01 Mar 2019
JAKARTA, 1 March 2019 – ASEAN and the United States of America (US) discussed a range of collaborative initiatives to further strengthen their strategic partnership during a meeting at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta yesterday.
The 10th Meeting of the ASEAN-US Joint Cooperation Committee noted that the ASEAN-US relations continued to follow an upward trajectory since its elevation to a strategic level in 2015. Taking stock of the implementation of the ASEAN-US Plan of Action (2016-2020), they noted the progress made in its third year of implementation with all of the 103 action lines being addressed.
Both sides noted the importance of addressing emerging issues and deepening cooperation in areas of common strategic priorities such as cybersecurity; transnational crime; connectivity; digital economy in response to the 4th Industrial Revolution; MSMEs development; trade facilitation in particular the advancement of the ASEAN Single Window; humanitarian assistance and disaster relief; and youth-related programmes, including the Young Southeast Asia Leaders Initiative.
ASEAN expressed appreciation for the US’ continued support to ASEAN Community building and integration efforts and looked forward to the implementation of the two new five-year development programmes, namely the Inclusive Growth in ASEAN through Innovation, Trade and E-Commerce (IGNITE) and the Partnership for Regional Optimization within the Political-Security and Socio-Cultural Communities (PROSPECT). The meeting also welcomed the new regional initiatives on infrastructure, energy and technology amounting to USD 113 million as part of the US’ Indo-Pacific strategy as well as the US-ASEAN Smart Cities Partnership.
ASEAN and the US also exchanged views on regional and international issues affecting the region, including developments on the South China Sea and Korean Peninsula.
The meeting was co-chaired by Ambassador Ekkaphab Phanthavong, Permanent Representative of Lao PDR to ASEAN, and Jane Bocklage, Chargé d’Affaires of the US Mission to ASEAN. It was attended by the Permanent Representatives of ASEAN Member States as well as representatives of the ASEAN Secretariat and the US Mission to ASEAN.
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