ASEAN and the United Nations have reaffirmed their partnership to work towards the realisation of the ASEAN Community and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
This commitment was made at the ASEAN-UN Ministerial Meeting held at the UN Headquarters in New York with the participation of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and ASEAN Secretary-General Le Luong Minh, according to the ASEAN Secretariat’s press release.
Noting that 2015 marks the 70th anniversary of the UN and a milestone in the establishment of an ASEAN community, the meeting welcomed the formal adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals at the Summit on September 25-27.
ASEAN welcomed various reviews by the UN in peace and security, and looked forward to further cooperating in the future with the ASEAN Community’s Post-2015 Vision.
The meeting welcomed the progress in the cooperation within the framework of the Joint Declaration on Comprehensive Partnership between ASEAN and the UN.
They agreed to strengthen concrete cooperation in each pillar of the ASEAN-UN Comprehensive Partnership.
They also agreed to work on a five-year plan of action to implement the Joint Declaration in the post-2015 period, to be finalised in the first quarter of 2016.
The meeting further recognised the importance of considering the implementation of the ASEAN Community’s Post-2015 Vision alongside the realisation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to complement one another, particularly in reducing poverty and hunger, tackling inequalities and promoting women empowerment, fostering sustainable economic growth and equitable social development, protecting the environment, ensuring peoples’ access to clean water and clean air, minimising adverse impact of climate change and building effective institutions to achieve sustainable and inclusive development as well as in enhancing the collaboration between the UN and its specialised agencies.
The UN reaffirmed its continued support to ASEAN’s post-2015 community building and ASEAN’s centrality in the evolving regional architectures.
The meeting also exchanged views on regional and international issues of common interest and concerns, such as peacekeeping and conflict prevention, combating international terrorism and preventing violent extremism, addressing transnational crime, the irregular movement of persons, disaster risk reduction, response and recovery, food and energy security, global health issues, and inclusive and sustainable development.
The meeting also affirmed the importance of peaceful settlement of disputes, including in the East Sea, through dialogue and in conformity with international law.
The meeting welcomed ASEAN’s continuing efforts to engage with the UN and its positive contribution to the work of these bodies and to multilateralism in general.
