Ambassador Lai Thai Binh highlights three key priorities at AMM 59 and Vietnam's contributions
WVR - Vietnamese Ambassador to the Philippines Lai Thai Binh affirmed that the participation of Politburo Member and Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung, leading the Vietnamese delegation at the 59th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AMM 59), clearly demonstrates Vietnam's consistent emphasis on ASEAN in its foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralisation, and diversification.
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| President of the Philippines Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr, ASEAN Chair in 2026, welcomes Prime Minister Le Minh Hung to the 48th ASEAN Summit. (Source: VNA) |
Ambassador, could you share the key priorities of the 59th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AMM 59)?
The 59th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AMM 59) and related meetings took place from July 18-24 in Manila, Philippines, amidst rapid and complex regional and global changes. This is one of ASEAN's most important annual meetings, aimed at reviewing the progress of ASEAN Community building, setting future cooperation directions, and discussing regional and international issues of mutual interest.
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| Vietnamese Ambassador to the Philippines Lai Thai Binh. (Photo: Bao Chi) |
The first focus is to strengthen ASEAN's solidarity and central role. In response to strategic environmental changes, the ministers will discuss measures to enhance ASEAN's resilience across the three pillars of politics-security, economy, and socio-culture. They will also review the implementation of outcomes from the 48th ASEAN Summit to ensure the ASEAN Community continues to develop cohesively, inclusively, and adaptively to new challenges.
The second focus is to deepen ASEAN's relations with its partners. Through the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meetings with 11 Dialogue Partners, the ASEAN 3 Meeting, the East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers' Meeting (EAS FMM), and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), ASEAN will continue to promote cooperation in strategically significant areas such as digital transformation, innovation, artificial intelligence, supply chains, clean energy, maritime security, transnational crime prevention, and climate change response. Amidst the complex strategic competition among major powers, ASEAN-led mechanisms further affirm their role as forums for dialogue, trust-building, and cooperation promotion, contributing to maintaining an open, inclusive, and rules-based regional structure.
The third focus is the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC). This activity holds special significance in affirming the enduring values of foundational principles such as respect for independence, sovereignty, non-interference in internal affairs, peaceful dispute resolution, and mutually beneficial cooperation promotion. After half a century, TAC has not only been the foundation for relations among Southeast Asian countries but has also become one of the important norms of the ASEAN-led regional structure, increasingly attracting broad participation and support from the international community.
What is the significance of Politburo Member and Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung leading the Vietnamese delegation to attend AMM 59 and related meetings, Ambassador?
The participation of Politburo Member and Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung leading the Vietnamese delegation at the meeting clearly demonstrates Vietnam's consistent emphasis on ASEAN in its foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralisation, and diversification. ASEAN has always been one of the strategic priorities in Vietnam's foreign policy and a particularly meaningful cooperation space for the country's peaceful, stable, and developmental environment.
Through attending the meeting, Vietnam will continue to make positive and responsible contributions to the ASEAN Community building process, participate in discussions on the Association's development directions, strengthen intra-group solidarity, enhance ASEAN's central role, and promote ASEAN's relations with its partners. This reaffirms Vietnam's image as an active, responsible member making substantial contributions to ASEAN's common affairs.
The mission also holds special significance for Vietnam-Philippines relations. The year 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, and both sides have recently upgraded their relationship to an Enhanced Strategic Partnership. The participation of the Vietnamese Foreign Minister at the meeting in Manila is a vivid testament to Vietnam's support for the Philippines' priorities as ASEAN Chair, contributing to the overall success of the ASEAN Chairmanship Year 2026.
Besides the multilateral agenda, the meeting is also an opportunity for the Minister to engage in bilateral foreign activities with countries within and outside the region. This is an important occasion to discuss issues of mutual concern, promote cooperation, and timely address emerging issues in relations with partners, thereby continuing to protect and advance Vietnam's strategic interests.
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| ASEAN member countries attend the meeting of the Executive Committee of the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ ExCom) in Manila on July 20. (Source: Asia Media Center) |
Could you share the efforts of the Embassy in coordinating and promoting cooperation between Vietnam and the Philippines during the year the Philippines assumes the ASEAN Chairmanship?
Vietnam always values and supports the Philippines in successfully assuming the ASEAN Chairmanship in 2026. The success of the Philippines is also the common success of ASEAN and Vietnam. In this spirit, the Vietnamese Embassy in the Philippines always strives to play a bridging role between the agencies of the two countries, contributing to ensuring close and smooth coordination so that activities within the ASEAN Chairmanship Year framework are effectively implemented, with Vietnam's active participation and contribution.
In recent times, the Embassy has maintained regular exchanges with the Philippines' National Organizing Committee for the ASEAN Chairmanship Year 2026, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs, and related agencies to thoroughly prepare for high-level Vietnamese delegations attending ASEAN Summits, ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meetings, ASEAN Economic Ministers' Meetings, and many other specialized meetings. At the same time, the Embassy actively supports information exchange, enhances coordination of positions, and promotes consensus between the two sides on regional and international issues of mutual concern.
The year 2026 is particularly significant as it is both the year the Philippines holds the ASEAN Chairmanship and the year the two countries celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations and upgrade their relationship to an Enhanced Strategic Partnership. This provides a favourable foundation for the Embassy to promote bilateral cooperation aligned with ASEAN's priorities, contributing to realizing the new contents of the recently upgraded relationship framework and expanding cooperation in key areas such as defense, security, trade, investment, agriculture, tourism, digital transformation, and people-to-people exchanges.
Besides political-diplomatic activities, the Embassy also places special emphasis on strengthening connections between businesses, localities, and people of the two countries. The Embassy particularly values supporting the business community in seeking cooperation opportunities, providing market and policy information, and coordinating the organization of cultural promotion activities, people-to-people exchanges, and academic seminars on the occasion of ASEAN events in the Philippines.
We believe that these practical activities will contribute to spreading the spirit of the ASEAN Community, strengthening the friendship between the peoples of the two countries, and creating additional momentum for the Enhanced Strategic Partnership between Vietnam and the Philippines to continue to develop strongly in the future, while also making positive contributions to peace, stability, cooperation, and the overall development of ASEAN.
Thank you very much, Ambassador!
