PM Chinh attends 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits’ opening ceremony
VOV.VN- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on November 11 led a Vietnamese delegation to attend the opening ceremony of the 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits which are underway in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, with the participation of leaders of ASEAN member states, ASEAN Secretary-General along with many representatives of international partners and organizations.
Upon addressing the opening ceremony, Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen highlighted the significance of the 55th anniversary of the establishment of ASEAN, which has undergone a long journey of regional connectivity and cooperation, and promoted cohesion among members within the ASEAN family for the common goal of peace, self-reliance and development.
The 40th, 41st ASEAN Summits and related meetings are viewed as an opportunity for countries to look back and show their determination to strive for a united, resilient, inclusive and rules-based future.
Many important declarations will be adopted such as a declaration on the 55th Anniversary of ASEAN, a declaration on action: responding to challenges together and the ASEAN connectivity agenda statement after 2025. These are the policy directions for promoting economic cooperation, equitable development, seamless connectivity and maintaining ASEAN's central role in the regional architecture.
After three years of suffering the COVID-19 pandemic, with the solidarity and tireless efforts of each member country and the whole ASEAN family, it can be said that ASEAN has successfully overcome the pandemic and resumed economic activities. Especially, the region's economic growth rate is anticipated to reach 5.3% and 4.9% in 2022 and 2023, which is a positive increase compared to the world.
Along with the achievements recorded in recent years, Prime Minister Hun Sen underlined the need to be aware that ASEAN and the region are facing a lot of difficulties and challenges, thereby posing an urgent need for an overall approach, a vision, and proper orientations and policies.
That is also the core spirit of the 2022 theme “Addressing Challenges Together” . In that context, ASEAN should give the highest priority to maintaining solidarity, unity and centrality to overcome challenges together and build a resilient community for all people.
"Looking to the future, ASEAN needs to strongly promote the values that have made ASEAN successful over the past five decades. It is a result of hard work and perseverance that we all need to cherish to continue to record success in the time ahead," emphasized the Cambodian PM.
The opening ceremony deeply reflected the ASEAN identity through traditional musical performances bearing the cultural imprints of the member countries.
Immediately after the opening session, ASEAN leaders attended the plenary session of the 40th ASEAN Summit and the retreat of the 41st ASEAN Summit.