Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for the ASEAN Political-Security Community, H.E. Dato’ Astanah Abdul Aziz, met with Minister of the Interior of Timor-Leste, H.E. Francisco da Costa Guterres, in Dili, Timor-Leste, today. Both sides exchanged views on cooperation under the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime (AMMTC) framework, including advancing the implementation of the ASEAN Plan of Action (POA) in Combatting Transnational Crime (2026–2035) and the ASEAN POA on Cooperation on Immigration and Consular Assistance Matters (2022–2031).
The meeting also welcomed Timor-Leste’s accession to three ASEAN legal instruments under the purview of the AMMTC, namely the ASEAN Convention on Counter Terrorism (ACCT), the ASEAN Convention Against Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (ACTIP) and the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Visa Exemption. DSG Dato’ Astanah reaffirmed the ASEAN Secretariat’s readiness to continue supporting Timor-Leste in its participation and contribution to the work of the AMMTC and its subsidiary mechanisms, with a view to advancing ASEAN law enforcement cooperation against transnational crime, as well as in border management and immigration.
Image credit: ASEAN Secretariat
