26th ASEAN Summit ends, adopts three declarations

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SME Times News Bureau | 28 Apr, 2015
The 26th ASEAN Summit concluded here on Monday with the adoption of three declarations, including the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on a People-Oriented, People-Centred ASEAN, which aims to establish a regional community by the end of this year.

The declaration spelled out ASEAN's specific commitments on the political, economic and socio-cultural pillars that will help create sustainable development in the region, Xinhua reported.

The two other documents adopted were the Langkawi Declaration on the Global Movement of Moderates, which solidified ASEAN's recognition of and adherence to moderation as a tool for bridging differences and resolving disputes, and the Declaration on Institutionalising the Resilience of ASEAN and its Communities and People to Disasters and Climate Change.

"I believe we have had some very useful and positive discussions and have made good headway in working together to make a people-centred ASEAN a reality," Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said at the closing session of the Summit at the Langkawi International Convention Centre.

As a result of extensive discussions at the summit, he noted, it was clear that ASEAN was making strong progress towards the establishment of the ASEAN Community by the year-end.

"This is a very significant milestone in the history of our organisation, and we must ensure that every effort is expended in pursuit of that goal," he said.

The ASEAN Community involves a plan to create a common economic, political-security and socio-cultural region.

"We will act to make the most of our region's tremendous potential," Najib told the closing session of the summit.

ASEAN, which was established in 1967, comprises 10 Southeast Asian countries -- Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.