Indonesian president urges ASEAN not to become platform for conflict

By Alperen Aktas

ISTANBUL (AA) – Indonesia's President Joko Widodo urged the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Friday not to become a platform for conflict and a tool used by any nation.

“We, in ASEAN, are committed to continuously bolstering unity and solidarity as well as strengthening ASEAN's centrality in maintaining peace and stability in the region,” Widodo told top diplomats from the bloc.

Indonesia is the current chair of the ASEAN, its fifth time – 1976, 1996, 2003, 2011, 2023 –, and Jakarta is hosting the 56th Foreign Ministers’ meeting which concludes today.

“ASEAN must not be an area of competition. It shall not become a proxy to any country, and we must respect international laws. So, we truly hope for cooperation and support from ASEAN’s partners,” Jokowi said, according to Jakarta-based Antara News.

"There is a saying in Indonesia: ‘We can become a winner without degrading others, without defeating others.’ For that, I invite us to be honorable winners,” the president said.

In a joint statement on Thursday, the bloc’s top diplomats reaffirmed ASEAN’s continued support for Myanmar’s efforts to “bring peace, stability, the rule of law, promote harmony and reconciliation among the various communities, as well as ensure sustainable and equitable development in Rakhine State.”

They emphasized ASEAN’s continued support to ensuring safety and security for all communities in Rakhine State “as effectively as possible and facilitating the voluntary return of displaced persons in a safe, secure, and dignified manner.”

ASEAN is a political and economic union of 10 member states in Southeast Asia – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam – which promotes intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, political, and sociocultural integration between its members in Asia-Pacific.