The ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the only bloc-hosted security forum in the high-tension region that represents 27 key countries including the United States, China and Russia, must be able to assert its relevancy and respond to contemporary challenges, said Foreign Minister Sugiono at the forum’s meeting in Kuala Lumpur last week.

Malaysia, this year’s bloc chair, hosted last week the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and other related meetings, including the ARF on Friday. The security meeting featured high-level representatives from all 10 ASEAN countries and their partners, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Russia’s top diplomat Sergei Lavrov.

The week-long high-level meeting was held against the backdrop of Washington’s trade tariff policy, Moscow’s latest rounds of attacks on Ukraine, as well as Beijing’s increasing presence in the South China Sea.

Representing Southeast Asia’s biggest nation, Sugiono highlighted during the ARF that the region’s security was also currently facing a multitude of non-military challenges, including economic fragility, climate degradation and cyber-threats.

“Mere dialogue will prove insufficient. The ARF must actively fulfill its initial mandate of advancing preventive diplomacy,” the minister said, suggesting more practical cooperation such as joint exercises, training and early-warning mechanisms.

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