Malaysia on 29 April 2025 hosted the ASEAN Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) and related meetings in Kuala Lumpur, underscoring its commitment to regional cooperation and integration.
The meetings were chaired by the Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dato’ Sri Amran Mohamed Zin, in his capacity as Malaysia’s SOM Leader.
A key focus of the discussions was the ASEAN Community Vision 2045, which is expected to be adopted at the upcoming 46th ASEAN Summit on 26 May 2025.
The meeting expressed appreciation to the High-Level Task Force for successfully finalising the strategic vision, which outlines goals in political-security, economic, socio-cultural, and connectivity pillars.
Progress on Timor-Leste’s full membership in ASEAN was also reviewed. The ACCWG-TL meeting assessed the implementation of the Roadmap for Timor-Leste’s accession, with emphasis on capacity-building programmes for Timorese officials and the establishment of a dedicated Timor-Leste Unit within the ASEAN Secretariat.
Meanwhile, the SEANWFZ ExCom meeting reaffirmed ASEAN’s long-standing commitment to global disarmament and non-proliferation, including efforts to engage Nuclear Weapon States in acceding to the SEANWFZ Protocol to strengthen the region’s nuclear-weapon-free status.
Malaysia reiterated its dedication to working closely with ASEAN Member States and Timor-Leste to advance regional unity, stability and prosperity.
Shahriena Shukri is a journalist covering business and economic news in Malaysia, providing insights on market trends, corporate developments, and financial policies. More about Shahriena Shukri.
