Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today delivered pre-recorded remarks at the Asia Pacific Regional Workshop on Fostering Solidarity for Arms Regulation and Security Cooperation held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In his remarks, Dr. Kao highlighted ASEAN’s ongoing efforts to strengthen regional cooperation in addressing illicit arms flows and combatting arms smuggling, as one of ASEAN’s eight transnational crime priorities under the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime (AMMTC). He recognised recent milestones, including the ASEAN Declaration on Combating Arms Smuggling in 2023 and the renewal of the ASEAN Plan of Action in Combatting Transnational Crime for the period of 2026–2035, which would guide practical cooperation in ASEAN and contribute to setting the trajectory of ASEAN efforts to combat arms smuggling.
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The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, was established on 8 August 1967 in Bangkok, Thailand, with the signing of the ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration) by the Founding Fathers of ASEAN: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Brunei Darussalam joined ASEAN on 7 January 1984, followed by Viet Nam on 28 July 1995, Lao PDR and Myanmar on 23 July 1997, Cambodia on 30 April 1999, and Timor-Leste on 26 October 2025 making up what is today the eleven Member States of ASEAN.
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ASEAN organs always strive to achieve ASEAN’s goals and objectives, the Secretary-General of ASEAN and the ASEAN Secretariat shall be functioned as coordinating Secretariat to help facilitate effective decision-making withing and amongst ASEAN bodies. In addition, each Member State shall appoint a Permanent Representative to liaise with Secretary-General of ASEAN and the ASEAN Secretariat
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ASEAN shall develop friendly relations and mutually beneficial dialogues, cooperation and partnerships with countries and sub-regional, regional and international organisations and institutions. This includes external partners, ASEAN entities, human rights bodies, non-ASEAN Member States Ambassadors to ASEAN, ASEAN committees in third countries and international organisations, as well as international / regional organisations.
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The rodmap for an ASEAN Community (2009-2015) was declared by the leaders in 2009. The ASEAN Community, anchored on three community pillars: Political-Security Community, Economic Community, Socio-Cultural Community was launched in 2015. The ASEAN 2025: Forging Ahead Together was introduced in 2015 as a Post-2015 Vision. It comprises the ASEAN Community Vision 2025, the ASEAN Political-Security Community Blueprint 2025, the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint 2025 and the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Blueprint 2025
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