ASEAN Ministers Reaffirm Unity By Calling Myanmar To Comply With The 5PC
KUALA LUMPUR, May 25 (Bernama) -- ASEAN’s call on Myanmar to fully comply with the Five-Point Consensus (5PC) as a prerequisite for holding any elections in the country concluded the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting today.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said that ASEAN has conveyed a clear, strong, and consistent message to Myanmar that any discussion on elections must take place only after the full implementation of the 5PC.
“There’s no point having an election if it is partially participated in by people of Myanmar. That will aggregate the situation. As far as ASEAN is concerned, we very much insist upon this 5PC to be fulfilled by the State Administration Council (SAC),” he said.
Meanwhile, ASEAN Foreign Ministers today reaffirmed their support for Timor-Leste’s full membership in the regional bloc, acknowledging the country’s significant progress in implementing the ASEAN Roadmap.
Mohamad said the development marked one of the key highlights of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM), held here ahead of the 46th ASEAN Summit, which also endorsed a proposal to establish a Special Task Force for Timor-Leste.
He emphasised that Timor-Leste must work diligently to fulfil all requirements and ensure compliance with ASEAN’s legal instruments, expressing hope that full membership could be formalised during the ASEAN Summit with Dialogue Partners at the end of October this year.
Mohamad also called for ASEAN to urgently strengthen regional economic integration and collective resilience amid intensifying global disruptions, including the United States (US)-China trade war, climate change, and rapid technological shifts.
He said superpower competition and the resulting shifts in the global order have the potential to disrupt the regional landscape as ASEAN nations are among those most heavily affected by the US-imposed tariffs.
On another development, Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said the collective ASEAN gross domestic product (GDP) is projected to grow at 4.7 per cent in 2025 as compared to 4.2 per cent last year.
He said the 25th ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Council meeting today also forecast the inflation rate for the region at three per cent.
“There was a discussion and a presentation by the ASEAN Secretariat when we talked about the year 2024 and what our forecast is for the year 2025 in terms of GDP growth. There was also a discussion on what we expect the inflation rate to be,” he said.
Tengku Zafrul added that the implementation rate of the AEC Blueprint 2025 currently stands at a commendable 97 per cent, comprising 75 per cent completed measures and 22 per cent currently in progress.
The AEC Blueprint 2025 has served as the strategic roadmap for building a highly integrated and cohesive ASEAN economy, promoting inclusive and innovation-led growth, and deepening regional connectivity and competitiveness, he said.
Tengku Zafrul also announced that negotiations on the enhanced memorandum of agreement for the ASEAN Power Grid (APG), aimed at strengthening energy security, connectivity, and sustainability, are set to conclude with a signing at the 43rd ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting in October 2025.
He said ASEAN Economic Ministers welcomed ongoing work towards the establishment of the APG Financing Facility Framework, which will enhance cross-border flows of foreign direct investments (FDIs) and new funding opportunities for regional energy-related projects.
“The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Council also expressed full support for the convening of a joint meeting between ASEAN’s Energy, Finance, and Economic Ministers in August 2025,” he added.
-- BERNAMA
