US and Asean countries to hold virtual meeting of foreign ministers, Cambodia says
- The meeting will be attended by US Secretary of State and foreign ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations
- The video conference on Wednesday will be the first such high-level meeting between the two sides under the administration of US President Joe Biden
The United States and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will hold a foreign ministers’ meeting virtually on Wednesday, the Cambodian government said in a statement on Monday.
It was originally expected to be held in late May but was postponed at the last minute because US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was heading to the Middle East, could not participate due to a communication failure on the plane.
The rescheduled meeting will last for just 90 minutes and will be attended by Blinken and foreign ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, including Myanmar’s junta-appointed foreign minister.
It will focus largely on “re-energising the (Asean-US) relationship post-Trump,” said a senior Asean official, referring to former US President Donald Trump.
While there is no specific agenda, the issue of territorial disputes in the South China Sea and measures to counter the Covid-19 pandemic are expected to be discussed.
The political crisis in Myanmar following the military coup on February 1 “might be raised as a concern but not discussed,” said the official.
Sources said a joint press release might be issued by the co-chairs, Laos and the United States, at the end of the videoconference.
Singapore says Asean to ‘expedite’ Myanmar plan, as UN warns that civil war looms
Laos, which coordinates Asean’s “dialogue relations” with the United States, had wanted the meeting held back-to-back with the Asean Regional Forum on security next month, but Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia were persuasive in getting it held earlier, according to Asean sources.
Asean held a foreign ministers’ meeting with China in Chongqing on June 7 and with Russia in Jakarta on July 6.
Asean comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
