The appeal of the 47th ASEAN Summit

Malaysia's 2025 ASEAN Chairmanship logo with the flags of ASEAN countries and partners in Kuala Lumpur - Photo: AFP

This morning, October 26, the 47th ASEAN Summit and related summits officially opened in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia). This is the most important and largest series of conferences in Malaysia's ASEAN Chairmanship Year 2025 with the theme "Inclusive and Sustainable".

What are the highlights of the 47th ASEAN Summit?

Sharing with Tuoi Tre Online, Mr. PHAM QUANG VINH - former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs , former Head of ASEAN SOM Vietnam - commented that the 47th ASEAN Summit was held in the context of many fluctuations in the world and regional situation.

In that context, Malaysia, the ASEAN Chair 2025, will work with the remaining countries to finalize this year's legacy.

According to Mr. Vinh, this will be demonstrated through a number of specific stories. Firstly , the official admission of Timor-Leste as the 11th member will complete the map of Southeast Asia in the ASEAN family.

This story demonstrates the attractiveness of ASEAN, but also poses the problem of helping Timor-Leste catch up with the organization's development pace, including economic links.

The second is the review of a series of agreements, the most notable of which are on trade and economic and digital transformation.

Former Deputy Minister Pham Quang Vinh assessed that over the past year, Malaysia has strongly promoted the upgrading of the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) and the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA) and achieved results.

In addition, countries can also make new progress in drafting the Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) and create the premise for signing in 2026.

In the context of a volatile world , Mr. Vinh expects that strengthening regional cooperation, especially intra-ASEAN economic and trade cooperation, will help countries maintain sustainable supply chains and respond to challenges. However, for the above agreements to be implemented, ASEAN as a whole needs to strengthen integration and meet the requirements of ATIGA.

Vietnam's former ASEAN SOM chief affirmed: "I expect the legacy from Malaysia's Chairmanship year will create momentum for ASEAN to both promote its community role and the central role of the region, while promoting responses to emerging challenges and taking advantage of new growth drivers."

Vietnam - the most active and disciplined member

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and leaders of ASEAN countries signed the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on ASEAN Community Vision 2045 at the 46th ASEAN Summit in May - Photo: REUTERS

World security and political analyst COLLINS CHONG YEW KEAT (University of Malaya, Malaysia) expects this ASEAN Summit to mark a clearer turning point in ASEAN's foreign and economic policy.

The Malaysian expert stressed that economic frameworks need to take concrete steps to deepen cooperation on semiconductors, critical minerals, digital trade and clean energy. In addition, establishing mechanisms to anchor US capital and innovation in the ASEAN economic ecosystem is also important.

“These are the areas that will determine the region’s competitiveness in the next decade,” Mr. Chong affirmed.

Notably, Mr. Chong said that this ASEAN Summit has special significance for Vietnam.

"As one of the most dynamic and disciplined members of ASEAN, Vietnam is positioned to gain the most from an ASEAN that clearly emphasizes a rules-based order and economic resilience," he assessed.

Mr. Chong assessed that Vietnam's consistent leadership, from chairing the 2020 ASEAN Summit to its firm and strategic stance on maritime law, has helped the country take the lead in demonstrating a clear strategy, thereby creating trust and spillover effects in the region as well as with external partners.

"Vietnam is a typical example of how strategic clarity, not reactiveness, builds real credibility," Mr. Chong emphasized.

Testing ASEAN's role

Expert Collins Chong Yew Keat assessed that the participation of more than 30 world leaders in the ASEAN Summit and related summits is a testament to ASEAN's enduring central role, but also a test of the bloc's role.

“ASEAN’s credibility will no longer be judged by the number of summits it hosts or its ability to bring together major powers in one place, but by whether it can deliver viable outcomes that shape the region’s security, economic and technological future,” Mr. Chong emphasized.

The Malaysian expert also pointed out that ASEAN's strength and credibility must be determined by how effectively ASEAN defends its principles, partnerships and policies that ensure its future.

“To do that, ASEAN must act with purpose, unity and courage, anchoring itself firmly in a rules-based framework of prosperity, security and technological progress. This is the only viable path for ASEAN to remain at the core of the global consciousness, rather than at the fringes.”

Tuoitre.vn

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/suc-hap-dan-tu-hoi-nghi-cap-cao-asean-lan-thu-47-20251026033935528.htm