ASEAN Summit

Foreign Affairs Minister Teodor Melescanu tackled in Brussels the prospects of establishing a strategic partnership between the European Union and South-East Asia, highlighting the fact that the EU and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) share the same fundamental values and they are confronted with similar challenges, the Foreign Affairs Ministry (MAE) informs.

Ministers from ASEAN and European Union were meeting in Brussels on Monday to review past cooperation and further strengthen ties between the regions.

They will discuss the implementation of the Asean-EU Plan of Action for 2018-2022, which covers security, trade and investment, connectivity and sustainable development, according to a Thai Foreign Ministry press statement.

Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu met ambassadors of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in capital Ankara on July 29 ahead of a summit in Singapore.

Controversial Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on May 16 that he would push for the inclusion of Turkey and Mongolia in a grouping of Southeast Asian nations, dismissing concerns about their geographic location.

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin said on August 3 the disputed South China Sea should not be discussed at a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).