Hanoi (VNA) 𝔉– Senior officials from ASEAN member countries met in Vientiane, Laos on July 22 to discuss the preparation of the agenda and documents for the 49th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM-49) which is slated for July 23-26.

Under the planned agenda, ASEAN foreign ministers will give their ideas on priorities of ASEAN cooperation as well as between the association and partners, with a spotlight on the strengthening of intra-bloc solidarity as well as the central role of the grouping. They will discuss the implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision towards 2025, the enhancement of ASEAN operation, the cooperation in coping with current challenges, and the orientations for the relations between the association and partners, as well as regional and international issues of shared concern. The minister will also talk about the preparations for the 29th ASEAN Summit and high-level meetings between ASEAN and its partners, which are scheduled for September in Vientiane . ASEAN foreign ministers are scheduled to approve a number of important documents, including a joint statement from the meeting, a declaration on the 40 th anniversary of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, and an ASEAN-China joint statement on the full implementation of the Declaration on Conduct of Parties in the East Sea . Laos , as the ASEAN Chair, will also release the Chair Declarations of meetings between ASEAN and its partners. During their meeting, ASEAN senior officials also agreed to immediately launch blueprints for the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and increase the efficiency of ASEAN bodies. They highlighted the significance of the reinforcement of the bloc’s solidarity and unity, as well as the promotion of ASEAN’s central role in the region amidst the complicated regional and world situation and the young ASEAN Community. The Vietnamese delegation at the meeting, led by Deputy Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung, made a number of proposals on some important issues to be submitted to the AMM-49, including the integration of the implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 with the United Nations 2030 Agenda on sustainable development, the fostering of practical affiliation with partners and the possibility of updating the ASEAN Charter. As scheduled, SOM ASEAN+3 between ASEAN countries and China, the Republic of Korea and Japan will take place on July 23, the same day with the SOM of ASEAN and countries joining the East Asia Summit (EAS) that comprise China, the Republic of Korea, Japan, the US, Russia, India, Australia and New Zealand. The meetings aim to prepare for the AMM+3 and the EAS Summit on July 26.-VNA