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
On his first day in the United Kingdom, Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, attended a welcome lunch hosted in his honour by the academic administration of the University of Warwick, which included Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor (International) of the University of Warwick, Professor Dan Bra
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today hosted the first media engagement session for 2026, at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat. During the session, Dr. Kao highlighted the outcomes of the recently-concluded ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM) Retreat, held in Cebu, the Ph
At the invitation of the University of Warwick and the United Kingdom Mission to ASEAN, respectively, Secretary-General of ASEAN Dr. Kao Kim Hourn will lead the ASEAN Secretariat’s delegation to participate in the Warwick Economics Summit 2026, followed by a working visit to the United Kingdom, o
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, this evening attended a dinner hosted by H.E. Noy Choumneanh, Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Cambodia to ASEAN. The dinner provided an opportunity for continued engagement following Ambassador Noy’s presentation of credentials on 12 Janua
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today received the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, H.E. Juraj Blanár, at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat. Both sides exchanged views on enhancing cooperation between ASEAN and Slovakia, including within the fr
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today received the Honourable Mary Ng, former Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development of Canada, at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat. The meeting exchanged views on ongoing ASEAN-Canada economic cooperation, i
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today received a courtesy call from H.E. Ambassador Takio Yamada, Ambassador for the Promotion of the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) and Special Assistant to the Foreign Minister of Japan, at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat. The meeting e
Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, today received Professor Emeritus Tan Sri Zakri Abdul Hamid, Joint-Chairman of the Malaysian Industry–Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT), at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat. The discussion highlighted MIGHT’s preliminary proposal
