ASEAN leaders on April 9 vowed to build an ASEAN community with the adoption of two statements and significant guidelines for boosting regional cooperation after a two-day meeting in Hanoi.
Regional leaders at the 16th ASEAN summit, working under the theme Towards ASEAN Community: from Vision to Action, were committed to strengthening cooperation in deepening regional integration and addressing global challenges with a view to building a resilient, dynamic and sustainable ASEAN Community by 2015.
The summit demonstrated the region’s determination to boost efforts during the transitional year of 2010 to effectively implement the roadmap for building a stronger and more effective ASEAN community, said Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem.
The summit approved the ASEAN Leaders’ Statement on Sustained Recovery and Development and Joint Response to Climate Change, reflecting the bloc’s strong support for Vietnam’s initiatives and contributing to accelerated cooperation in facing challenges, he said.
On the sidelines of the summit, regional foreign ministers signed the Agreement on the Privileges and Immunities of ASEAN, and the Protocol to the ASEAN Charter on Dispute Settlement Mechanisms, which was an important step towards the completion of the legal framework laid down by the ASEAN Charter.-