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View all search resultsAustralia will be with ASEAN every step of the way
ASEAN and the broader Indo-Pacific is the engine room of the global economy and how we recover from COVID-19 will affect the world.
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hen ASEAN was formed 53 years ago, its founders said the organization represented “the collective will of the nations of Southeast Asia to bind themselves together… and, through joint efforts and sacrifices, secure for their peoples and for posterity the blessings of peace, freedom and prosperity.”
No one could have predicted the joint efforts and sacrifices that would need to be made in 2020 – a year defined by COVID-19 and the upheaval that has followed.
At their virtual gathering last week, ASEAN leaders tackled some of the most complex challenges the region has ever faced: the devastating health impacts of the pandemic, recovery for battered economies, and the implications of the tectonic strategic shifts underway in the Indo-Pacific.
Amid the difficulties, the leadership on display by ASEAN last week was vital.
Australia was there too – as ASEAN’s oldest partner and friend – to support ASEAN leadership and centrality in the affairs of the region.
For Australia, the meetings marked an important new chapter for the ASEAN-Australia strategic partnership. ASEAN and Australia have agreed to strengthen this partnership by holding Summits between our leaders each year, providing an important platform for deeper cooperation.
When Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison addressed his ASEAN counterparts on the weekend, he said: “We are more than your neighbor – as your first dialogue partner, we are also your partner in the great recovery that is now occurring.
