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.
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
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.
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
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.
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
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.
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
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, on 15 September 2026, delivered remarks at the Reception commemorating the fifth anniversary of the ASEAN–China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) in Beijing, China, on the sidelines of his working visit to China.
In his remarks, Dr. Ka
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today met with Ambassador of Australia to ASEAN, H.E. Tiffany McDonald, at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat. Both sides discussed progress of ASEAN-Australia cooperation, particularly in light of the 5th anniversary of the ASEAN-Australia Compr
JAKARTA, 14 September 2026 – Ambassador of the State of Qatar to ASEAN, Dr. Sultan bin Mubarak Saad Al-Dosari, presented his Letter of Credence to Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat today.
Secretary-General Dr. Kao congratulated Ambassador
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today met with Dr. Marty Natalegawa, former Foreign Minister of the Republic of Indonesia and Founder of the Amity Circle. During the Meeting, Dr. Kao underscored the importance of platforms such as the Amity Circle in leveraging the experience and ins
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today officiated the 3rd ASEAN Think Tanks Summit (ATTS) at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat, in Jakarta. In his keynote remarks, Dr. Kao highlighted the important role played by think tanks and academia in the regional policymaking process. As
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, this morning met with the Chairman of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA), Prof. Simon Tay, at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat. They exchanged views on the ASEAN Think Tanks Summit (ATTS), the third edition of which is comm
At the invitation of the Government of the People’s Republic of China, Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, will undertake a Working Visit to Beijing, the People’s Republic of China, on 15 -16 September 2026.
During the visit, Dr. Kao will attend a series of engagements, includ
On the margins of the M360 ASEAN, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, on 10 September 2026, met with Director General of the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA), Vivek Badrinath, to deepen partnership with GSMA in support of ASEAN’s exp
On the sidelines of the M360 ASEAN in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today met with Minister of Communications of Malaysia, H.E. Fahmi Fadzil, to exchange views on the ASEAN Guidelines on the Safe and Responsible Use of Social Media Platforms, which was launc
