Amid dramatic shifts in the strategic landscape, and their negative impacts on global peace and stability, Cambodia, Indonesia and Thailand issued a joint statement today (Wednesday) on their respective roles as hosts of three upcoming and important leaders’ meetings.

The 478-word joint statement said that the three ASEAN members are privileged to host the ASEAN-related summit from 11th to 13th November, the G20 Summit on the 15th and 16th November and the Asia Pacific Economic Leaders’ Meeting on the 18th and 19th November 2022.

These meetings “share commonalities that provide a unique opportunity for all participating countries/economies to jointly advance the collective global and regional agenda and efforts to bring peace, prosperity and sustainable and inclusive development to all our peoples.”

This is the first time that the three ASEAN hosts have issued a statement to reaffirm their respective roles and commitment to facing common challenges together. It is the first time in the history of ASEAN that its three members are hosting three important leaders’ meetings back to back.

Under the chairmanship of Cambodia, ASEAN would like to demonstrate its strong sense of togetherness. This year’s banner is “ASEAN A.C.T: Addressing Challenges Together”. These challenges are efforts to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, promoting ASEAN integration and competitiveness in digital economies that will bring better health security and social protection to ASEAN’s 656 million citizens.

In the case of the G20, the host, Indonesia, wants to facilitate a strong and inclusive recovery for all. Three priority areas have been identified, namely strengthening the global health architecture, digital transformation and energy transitions. Indonesia hopes that the G20 can serve as a catalyst for a strong and inclusive global recovery.

Furthermore, as the chair of APEC 2022, Thailand will continue to work on ways and means to accelerate regional economic integration, to achieve shared prosperity. The 2022 APEC theme of “Open. Connect. Balance.” reflects the common goal and commitment of member economies to addressing the challenges arising from the pandemic and conflicts with serious global ramifications.

The joint statement was issued to display ASEAN’s overall determination to work “with all our partners and stakeholders to ensure a spirit of cooperation.” All three ASEAN members will continue to strengthen the grouping’s centrality, credibility and relevance in maintaining peace and stability, both in the region and the rest of the world.

ASEAN has 11 dialogue partners, namely the US, China, Japan, India, South Korea, Russia, the UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the EU.