Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son meets with ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn on the sidelines of the 56th ASEAN Foreign MinisterMeeting(AMM-56) and related meetings in Jakarta, Indonesia on July 11, 2023. (Photo: WVR)

What are your comments on the importance of discussing the “future” theme for ASEAN’s development path forward? What are the meanings of the AFF - an initiative of Viet Nam in such context?

This initiative of Viet Nam is a very good one, because the timing is quite important, especially in the context of the current drafting and crafting of the ASEAN Community Vision 2045 and its four Strategic Plans. Now that we are looking at the future of ASEAN, it is important to involve all the different stakeholders in the ASEAN- Community-building process.

Of course, we have also seen a lot of initiatives outside the region on future trajectories and developments, so it is important to have this ASEAN initiative, organized by Viet Nam. The participation of high-level representatives and officials from ASEAN member states at this forum also shows their support and endorsement of this initiative.

When we talk about the “future” theme in ASEAN’s development path ahead, this has to be carried out through strategic thinking and planning, in helping ASEAN steer and implement its future course. I am confident that the AFF will advance this, and in this regard, the initiative of Viet Nam is timely, bold and significant.

In the current regional and international context, what are the core values that ASEAN needs to maintain in any development milestone?

ASEAN, as it evolves and transforms, has to maintain its core values and principles, as these are part of the ASEAN Identity. One core value and principle is decision-making by consensus. Another one is the principle of solidarity and unity. ASEAN is strong when it is united.

Also, ASEAN has to maintain its principle of engagement. We have to maintain and consolidate our relations, cooperation and partnership with our partners. This is one of the strengths of ASEAN, namely that we have good relations and solid partnerships with the major powers, other countries and international and regional organisations. The levels of engagement can be distinguished through the different types of partnerships with ASEAN, such as Dialogue Partners, Sectoral Dialogue Partners, and Development Partners.

ASEAN’s external relations take place under other arrangements as well, like ASEAN-led mechanisms such as the East Asia Summit (EAS). Moreover, some countries which are not formal partners of ASEAN can actually engage ASEAN under ASEAN-led mechanisms, such as in the context of the ASEAN Regional Forum. It is important for countries engaging ASEAN to participate and endorse ASEAN’s core values.

We have also observed that there is a growing trend for regional organisations to enhance their cooperation with each other. We are experiencing this with ASEAN as well, where last year, ASEAN signed memorandums of understanding with the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) and the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA).

In addition to these core values of active and constructive engagement, ASEAN also needs to maintain its principle of transparency, openness and inclusiveness. The reason is that being transparent, open and inclusive helps build trust and I think we need a lot of trust right now in the region. We cannot allow trust deficit to take place.

Therefore, ASEAN has to constantly work with all of its partners, so that we are able to uphold and advance peace, stability and prosperity in the region. At the same time, we talk about the idea of making sure that the Southeast Asian region is completely free of nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction.

How do you evaluate Viet Nam’s efforts in working with members to develop the ASEAN Community?

We have seen Viet Nam’s commendable and steadfast efforts in working with the ASEAN Member States in developing and building the ASEAN Community. As such, we have seen a lot of landmark ASEAN documents named after Viet Nam, such as the Ha Noi Plan of Action and Ha Noi Declaration on the ASEAN Community’s Post-2025 Vision, among others.

Viet Nam’s contributions to ASEAN Community-building has been carried out through its own national development on the one hand, and its contributions to sub-regional cooperation and development on the other, because sub-regional cooperation represent the building blocks of the ASEAN Community.

Viet Nam is also active in every mechanism in ASEAN, including ASEAN-led mechanisms, since it became a full member of ASEAN in 1995. So, we hope Viet Nam can continue to remain active in its efforts and contributions to ASEAN Community-building process, especially in the context of the development of the ASEAN Community Vision 2045 and its four Strategic Plans which require consistent and effective implementation by the ASEAN Member States.

One of the highlights of the AFF 2024 is the Dialogue session among the Secretary-General of ASEAN and ASEAN youth representatives, what are your expectations of this session and your comments on the role of ASEAN youth to the Community?

It is good that Viet Nam has set aside the time for a special session to directly engage with the ASEAN youth during the ASEAN Future Forum. We expect the ASEAN youth to be active and to participate in any discussion on ASEAN, because they have a big stake in the future of ASEAN. Certainly, I expect that the youth interface session will be successful. The role of ASEAN youth is absolutely critical and I believe there are four priorities:

First, we have to constantly work to empower ASEAN youth. By empowering, they must be better trained and educated. They must have the necessary skills to participate in all sectors and pillars of the ASEAN Community. The world out there is very competitive. ASEAN youth has to be ready at any time to take on the responsibility to help shape the future of the ASEAN Community.

Second, along that line, we have to encourage our youth to make sure that they have the will or commitment. Without commitment, they would not be highly motivated to play a positive role.

Third, we have to talk about their participation. For every ASEAN Member State, we have to make room for the ASEAN youth to be able to participate in the ASEAN Community-building process. The more they get involved, the better. By participating in the ASEAN process, they can have a sense of ownership, obligation and responsibility.

Fourth, we have to involve ASEAN youth in promoting ASEAN identity, ASEAN unity, and ASEAN solidarity. Therefore, we need to have more activities, programmes, and projects among the ASEAN youth that would involve them in one way or another. It is important for them to interact with each other, and to nurture and cultivate the ASEAN core values among our youth, as the future belongs to them. We hope they make efforts and invest in time to study ASEAN so that they will have a better understanding and greater appreciation of ASEAN.