Ambassador João Pereira: Vietnam is a 'companion' of Timor-Leste on the path to ASEAN
WVR - Ahead of the third ASEAN Future Forum (AFF) taking place in Hanoi, Timor-Leste's Ambassador to Vietnam João Pereira shared his country's expectations regarding ASEAN integration and Vietnam's role as a strategic partner.
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| Timor-Leste Ambassador João Pereira. (Photo: Linh Nguyen) |
Ample room for bilateral cooperation
In a conversation with the press ahead of the official visit of Timor-Leste's Prime Minister Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão to Vietnam and his participation in the third AFF from June 7-10, 2026, Ambassador João Pereira shared that the leaders of the two countries have had numerous opportunities to discuss expanding cooperation in various fields.
According to the Ambassador, Timor-Leste is a maritime nation with pristine marine resources and significant development potential. Therefore, Timor-Leste seeks to collaborate with Vietnam in agriculture and fisheries.
The southern region of Timor-Leste has fertile natural conditions similar to those of Vietnam, facilitating the transfer of technology and agricultural production experience from Vietnam to enhance production capacity and sustainable development.
Additionally, the two countries have numerous opportunities for cooperation in the oil and gas and mining sectors.
Moreover, Timor-Leste hopes to receive support from Vietnam in education, science, technology, and research. The Timor-Leste Embassy is coordinating with several Vietnamese universities, aiming to sign cooperation agreements in the near future.
As of the end of 2023, Timor-Leste holds a national sovereign fund valued at approximately 18.9 billion USD. In the future, Timor-Leste may explore the possibility of investing a portion of this fund in Vietnam if suitable opportunities are identified.
Ambassador João Pereira also highly appreciates the positive outcomes achieved in the telecommunications sector, particularly the significant contributions of Viettel Telemor to Timor-Leste's development.
The Ambassador emphasized that Vietnam and Timor-Leste share many cultural, traditional, and lifestyle similarities. Strengthening people-to-people exchanges and fostering connections between the two communities will lay a solid foundation for bilateral relations and contribute positively to building a cohesive, united, and sustainably developing ASEAN Community in the future.
Ambassador João Pereira believes that, upon becoming a full member of ASEAN, Timor-Leste can make significant contributions to the region's peace, cooperation, and prosperity.
Timor-Leste boasts a rich cultural identity, a vibrant community life, and substantial potential in oil, gas, and minerals, offering additional opportunities for cooperation and economic development within ASEAN.
The Ambassador stressed that Timor-Leste seeks to promote and strengthen diplomatic relations and bilateral cooperation with all ASEAN countries through exchanges between governments, peoples, and businesses.
Joining ASEAN will open up numerous opportunities for Timor-Leste to become part of the ASEAN Economic Community as well as the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community, while also working with member countries towards realizing the ASEAN Vision 2045 with the goal of building "one vision, one community, one identity".
AFF - A Forum guiding ASEAN amidst global changes
Having participated in the AFF twice in Vietnam, the Ambassador noted that this is not just a regular exchange forum but has become a high-level dialogue platform following the Track 1.5 model (a model connecting policymakers, scholars, businesses, and international organizations to discuss "the future of ASEAN in the 21st century"), encouraging long-term thinking about regional challenges, from peace and security to digital transformation and sustainable development.
According to the Ambassador, the AFF is an important platform for countries to share visions, policies, and strategies and to coordinate towards ASEAN Vision 2045, while effectively responding to regional and global challenges and uncertainties.
Regarding the role of intra-ASEAN economic cooperation in enhancing resilience against global supply chain risks, the Ambassador noted that Southeast Asia is currently one of the most peaceful regions in the world and holds a particularly important geostrategic position connecting the Pacific Ocean with the Indian Ocean. With a population of approximately 700 million, ASEAN possesses immense economic potential.
The challenge is for ASEAN to gather a common will to bridge the development gap and effectively respond to supply chain risks. Forums like the AFF play a crucial role in creating dialogue spaces for countries to exchange and seek coordinated solutions. This will help ASEAN become a unified community capable of addressing emerging global issues.
