Prime Minister
On Saturday, I will participate in a virtual ASEAN-Australia Summit and a virtual East Asia Summit, alongside Australia’s key Indo-Pacific partners.
ASEAN remains at the heart of Australia’s vision for a peaceful, stable, inclusive, sovereign, prosperous and resilient Indo-Pacific. ASEAN has a central role to play in the region’s recovery and the post COVID-19 regional order.
At the ASEAN-Australia Summit, I will discuss Australia’s role in our region’s response to COVID-19 recovery. Australia is proud to be a Strategic Partner of ASEAN and its oldest Dialogue Partner.
At the East Asia Summit, I will highlight the importance of our collective COVID-19 recovery being guided by the principles set out in the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific – by transparency, inclusivity, good governance and respect for international law.
The East Asia Summit is the Indo-Pacific’s premier forum for discussion of our region’s most pressing strategic challenges. Never has this been more important as the world continues to tackle COVID-19.
I will also deliver an address at the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit on Friday night and participate in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Summit on Sunday.
RCEP brings together Australia’s top regional trading partners into a single economic framework and will link us more closely with this dynamic region.
I congratulate Vietnam for its stewardship as ASEAN Chair during a very challenging year and for Prime Minister Phuc’s hosting of the ASEAN-Australia, East Asia and RCEP Summits.