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| ASEAN celebrates 50th anniversary |
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said here Sunday that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) would continue to engage the world as the 10-nation bloc held a grand gala to celebrate its 50th anniversary with leaders of its dialogue partners.
ASEAN celebrates its 50th anniversary with dialogue partners
The ceremony was held ahead of the 31st ASEAN Summit and related summit summits that brought together the leaders of the 10 ASEAN countries and ASEAN dialogue partners, including key countries such as China and the United States.
"I am very honored to host this rare event where a number of world leaders are gathering to celebrate the 50th anniversary of ASEAN," said Dutert, whose country holds the ASEAN presidency this year.
Dutert said that ASEAN continued to build society under the Philippine presidency.
"We continue to align the three pillars of the ASEAN Community by promoting economic integration and building a common identity, while relying on our uniqueness and diversity," he said.
"The ASEAN countries continue to engage in the world," the Philippine president said. "Since its establishment, we have established meaningful and constructive relations with external partners based on the centrality of ASEAN," he said.
He looked forward to constructive and substantive discussions with other leaders during the summits.
At the 31st ASEAN Summit, leaders are expected to discuss the implementation of ASEAN Vision 2025 and the way forward. It will be followed by ASEAN-ASEAN summit meetings, including 10 + 1, 10 + 3 and the East Asia Summit.
ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.