Asean urged to close ranks in the face of complex challenge

Asean urged to close ranks in the face of complex challenges .SEPTEMBER 2016 @ 4:41 PM Facebook 0 Twitter Share 0 VIENTIANE: Laos President Bounnhang Vorachith today called on Asean to close ranks in the face of complex challenges faced by the grouping. He made the call in his keynote address at the opening of the back-to-back 28th and 29th Asean Summits held here. “In many parts of the world, multi-faceted security challenges have occurred such as terrorism and extremism, natural disasters, climate change, migration crisis, trafficking in persons, territorial disputes and armed conflicts, among others," he said. He also noted that at the same time, although the global economy has gradually recovered, growth remains slow and fragile. “Against this backdrop, there is a need for us to closely follow these developments and continue to enhance Asean cooperation and collaboration with the international community, including Asean's dialogue partners and other external parties in order to be able to respond to and address the said challenges in a timely manner.” Vorachith said Asean must continue to adhere to Asean's principles in promoting relevance and enhancing the centrality of Asean in its relations with external partners based on the Asean way, and in accordance with the particularity and reality of the Asean region moving towards a dynamic, rules-based, people-oriented, people-centred Asean community. Present at the opening ceremony was Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte. The leaders also witnessed the launch of the ‘Visit ASEAN@50’ campaign logo. The logo will be used in 2017 as part of the ‘Visit Asean@50: Golden Celebration’ campaign, promoting the twin objectives of commemorating the 50th anniversary of Asean, and embracing the Asean region as a single and united tourism destination. 127 reads (L-R) Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, Myanmar's State Councellor Aung San Suu Kyi, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Thailand's Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha, Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang, Laos President Bounnhang Vorachith, Laos Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, Philipinnes President Rodrigo Duterte, Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen and Indonesia's President Joko Widodo pose for photo during the opening ceremony of the 28th and 29th ASEAN Summits and Related Summits at the National Convention Center (NCC) in Vientiane, Laos, 06 September 2016. Laos is hosting the 28th and 29th ASEAN Summits and Related Summits from 06 to 08 September 2016. Laos President Bounnhang Vorachith today called on Asean to close ranks in the face of complex challenges faced by the grouping. EPA Photo