Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's working trip to attend the 47th ASEAN Summit has many important meanings.

Photo caption — Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh . Photo: VNA

Could you please tell us the significance of the 47th ASEAN Summit and related conferences?

The 47th ASEAN Summit and related conferences are the most important and largest series of conferences of the year of ASEAN, with the participation of leaders of ASEAN countries, Timor-Leste, leaders of partner countries, the Secretary-General of the United Nations and leaders of many international and regional organizations.

In the context of rapid and complex geopolitical and geo-economic fluctuations; fierce strategic competition, escalating conflicts in many regions; potential risks in the global economy; increasing non-traditional security challenges; multilateral institutions facing many problems of declining trust and pressure for reform, ASEAN continues to be a bright spot and driving force of multilateral cooperation, maintaining solidarity, promoting its central role, achieving many substantial and important results in strengthening economic connectivity, expanding partnerships and especially proactively shaping the ASEAN Community Vision 2045, a strategic document guiding the future of the region. ASEAN has proactively adapted to new development trends, building a series of new cooperation frameworks such as the Digital Economy Framework Agreement, the Digital Master Plan, the ASEAN Power Grid, etc. ASEAN's mechanisms have received support, attention and participation from partners, especially major countries, showing that ASEAN continues to promote its "convergence" capacity, affirming its role and trust with countries in its ability to coordinate, adapt flexibly and maintain balance in partnership relations.

Taking place at the right time when ASEAN is preparing to enter a new stage of development, with a new Vision, these Conferences will be an opportunity for leaders of countries to exchange strategic decisions, consolidate a peaceful and stable environment, facilitate development, and at the same time promote more substantive and effective regional connections, unlock potential, expand space and open new directions of cooperation for ASEAN.

Firstly, these Summits will unlock ASEAN's development potential, concretizing the goals set out in the ASEAN Community Vision 2045. The urgent task now is to translate the Vision into action, turning commitments into results, through effective and practical cooperation programs, focusing on people, businesses and localities.

Second, with the admission of Timor-Leste as the 11th member, ASEAN will expand its development space, which is not only a milestone in geographical expansion, but also has profound strategic significance, demonstrating the vitality, attractiveness and inclusiveness of ASEAN. Timor-Leste's participation will create new momentum for regional linkages and connectivity, promote integration and strengthen the cohesion of the ASEAN Community.

Third, the Conferences will open up new directions for cooperation between ASEAN and its partners, not only strengthening cooperation in traditional areas such as trade and investment, but also expanding strategic areas such as innovation, digital transformation, energy transformation, climate change response, sustainable development, etc. ASEAN and its partners are urgently completing many important cooperation documents to be approved on this occasion, laying the foundation for substantive, effective and mutually beneficial cooperation, for the goal of peace, stability, sustainable and inclusive development.

Could you please tell us the purpose and significance of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's working visit and your expectations for Vietnam's contributions at this Conference?

From October 26 to 28, 2025, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh will lead a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation to attend the 47th ASEAN Summit and related conferences in Malaysia.

The year 2025 has a special significance, marking the 30th anniversary of Vietnam joining the ASEAN common home, a journey built on sincerity, trust and high responsibility. The Prime Minister's working trip therefore has many important meanings. On the one hand, we continue to implement our foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, diversification and multilateralization, contributing to consolidating peace and stability, creating a favorable environment and conditions to implement the country's strategic goals in the coming period. On the other hand, we affirm Vietnam's pioneering role and responsible contribution in ASEAN, participating and making efforts to contribute to the common success of these Conferences, bringing ASEAN cooperation and cooperation between ASEAN and its partners increasingly deeper and more effective.

First of all, in the context of a volatile strategic environment, Vietnam will promote its pioneering role with other countries in strengthening ASEAN's solidarity, centrality, self-reliance and strategic autonomy, and enhancing the effectiveness of ASEAN's political-security cooperation mechanisms and tools in responding to traditional and non-traditional security challenges that affect peace and security in the region. Vietnam supports Timor-Leste's official accession to ASEAN and actively assists Timor-Leste in connecting and fully integrating into ASEAN. The Vietnamese delegation will also actively participate and exchange frankly and in good faith on international and regional issues of common concern, upholding the values of dialogue, cooperation and the rule of law, promoting the search for balanced and sustainable solutions that meet common concerns.

Second, Vietnam will propose specific directions to effectively implement the ASEAN Community Vision 2045, realizing a self-reliant, dynamic, creative and people-centered ASEAN. Accordingly, ASEAN needs to strengthen economic connectivity, effectively utilize the recently upgraded ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement, deepen intra-bloc connectivity, FTA network with partners, effectively exploit new growth drivers through cooperation frameworks such as negotiating the ASEAN Digital Economic Framework Agreement, building the ASEAN Power Grid, implementing the ASEAN Blue Economy Framework, and the ASEAN Circular Economy. Cooperation strategies on education, health, culture, labor, social security, sub-regional development, etc. need to be implemented responsibly, bringing about substantial results and practical benefits for people, businesses and localities.

Third, Vietnam will demonstrate its leading role in connecting ASEAN with its partners, consolidating ASEAN's position and central role in the current regional structure. Vietnam will proactively work with other countries to deepen relations with partners, build trust, promote partners to participate and contribute to regional cooperation, mobilize and effectively utilize external support resources, expand cooperation in potential areas such as digital transformation, digital economy, green economy, etc. As the coordinator of ASEAN-New Zealand relations, Vietnam will coordinate with other countries to successfully organize the Summit to celebrate 50 years of relations (1975-2025), promote qualitative changes in relations, upgrade ASEAN-New Zealand relations to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, opening a new phase of more substantive and comprehensive cooperation.

During the working trip, the Prime Minister is also expected to have many bilateral meetings with ASEAN leaders, partner countries and international organizations, thereby exchanging and proposing initiatives to promote cooperation and seek solutions to current issues facing ASEAN and the region.

Through this working trip, Vietnam once again affirmed the strategic importance of ASEAN in its foreign policy as well as its consistent commitment to continue to actively, proactively and responsibly contribute to building a united, self-reliant, inclusive and sustainable ASEAN Community.

Thank you very much, Deputy Minister Dang Hoang Giang!

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thoi-su/chuyen-cong-tac-du-hoi-nghi-cap-cao-asean-lan-thu-47-cua-thu-tuong-pham-minh-chinh-mang-nhieu-y-nghia-quan-trong-20251024162408000.htm