25th ASEAN Summit focuses on East Sea The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) should maintain and promote solidarity and raise their common voice on issues of regional concern, affirmed Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung at the 25th ASEAN Summit in Myanmar on November 12. After the opening ceremony, PM Dung and other ASEAN leaders met at a plenary session to discuss steps for the establishment of a more integrated ASEAN Community in next year along with the association’s post-2015 vision and the work on strengthening ASEAN institutions. They agreed to give priority to narrowing development gap and coping with non-traditional security challenges such as maritime safety and security, climate change, water security, epidemics, natural disasters, and transnational crime. He shared the view with other delegates on building a regional structure based on laws, principles, standards and codes of conduct written in the ASEAN Charter, the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon Free Zone Treaty (SEANWFZ), the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and the Bali Declaration. Prime Minister Dung and other ASEAN leaders laid emphasis on making the cooperation among ASEAN members more fruitful to meet increasing demand of the association in the post-2015 period. They exchanged views on issues of regional and international concern, such as the East Sea situation, the Korean Peninsula, the escalation of violence and terrorism in Iraq and Syria, and the Ebola epidemic. They were worried about illegal acts in the East Sea that go against the DOC and pose threat to peace, stability and security and maritime safety and freedom in the region. The East Sea issue remains complex, with large-scale reinforcements being built on reefs and islands, thus contradicting the DOC, they said. Prime Minister Dung stressed that ASEAN member countries should take responsibility in maintaining peace, stability and security in the region. He called on concerned parties to respect and strictly abide by the DOC and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The leaders urged ASEAN and China to work expeditiously toward the early conclusion of a legally binding code of conduct aimed at reducing territorial and maritime conflicts in the East Sea. They adopted the Nay Pyi Taw Statement on the ASEAN Community's post-2015 vision, a statement on strengthening the capacity of the ASEAN Secretariat and enhancing collaboration between ASEAN bodies, and an ASEAN Declaration on Climate Change. They also attended a ceremony to announce the establishment of the ASEAN Institute for Green Economy which is aimed at sharing experience and boosting cooperation in environment protection and economic development. Meanwhile, in his opening remarks, Myanmar President U Thein Sein reaffirmed that solidarity and a united stance were a prerequisite and foundation for the success of an ASEAN Community, contributing to a stronger position and voice in the region and the world. Once the new ASEAN Community is set up, it will be necessary to continue to strengthen connectivity and links, building trust, and promoting central role of the ASEAN in the existing regional cooperation mechanism and shaping regional architecture, he added. Established in 1967, ASEAN comprises ten members, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. VOV