Asean secretary-general Kao Kim Hourn speaks during a news conference held in conjunction with the 46th Asean Summit at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre on May 25, 2025. \u2014 Bernama pic<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As 46th summit opens in KL, Asean sec-gen reaffirms centrality, backs Malaysia\u2019s Myanmar leadership<\/p>\n\n\n\n
KUALA LUMPUR, May 26 \u2014 Asean Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn has reaffirmed that the regional bloc remains united and committed to its centrality and solidarity, even amid growing external pressures and persistent challenges such as the South China Sea dispute and the Myanmar crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Speaking to the media ahead of the 46th Asean Summit at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) here, Kao said the commitment was demonstrated when Asean Foreign Ministers, who met in four separate meetings yesterday, collectively reiterated that Asean\u2019s strength lies in its unity and centrality role in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe message is very clear. Asean Foreign Ministers have not just emphasised unity, but also reaffirmed how Asean will continue working together during this very challenging time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kao, who is leading the Asean Secretariat delegation to the 46th Summit, as well as the 2nd Asean-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit and the inaugural Asean-GCC-China Summit, said the bloc has consistently maintained a united voice on regional and global issues when engaging both internally and with external partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Commenting on Malaysia\u2019s announcement to send a delegation to Myanmar to resume engagement with stakeholders there, Kao said this reflects the active role of the Asean Chair and the Special Envoy on Myanmar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve seen that under Malaysia\u2019s chairmanship this year, the country has been very proactive and consistent in leading Asean, especially in efforts to engage Myanmar,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He cited Malaysia\u2019s swift response to Myanmar\u2019s recent 7.7-magnitude earthquake as a key example of this leadership. In coordination with Thailand, Malaysia initiated a special Asean Foreign Ministers\u2019 meeting to discuss the delivery of assistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe meeting was convened promptly to coordinate a common Asean response. Following that, we\u2019ve seen the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Myanmar both collectively and individually by member states,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kao noted that Asean continues to play a key role in mobilising regional and external support, channelling it through Asean-coordinated platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus (5PC), Kao said Asean remains firm in its position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe want to see a long-term ceasefire, non-violence, inclusive political dialogue, and an escalation in humanitarian assistance to help the people of Myanmar affected by both the political crisis and the recent natural disaster,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Responding to a question on whether Asean would press Myanmar\u2019s military junta to hold direct talks with the National Unity Government and other stakeholders, Kao reiterated the bloc\u2019s position by saying:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe want to see an inclusive political dialogue that involves all key stakeholders. What I\u2019ve observed is that Malaysia has been quite forthcoming in exercising leadership, with the support of Asean member states,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite growing concerns over external influence and internal discord, Kao stressed that Asean\u2019s consistency, cohesion and commitment to regional peace and stability remain unwavering. \u2014 Bernama<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Asean secretary-general Kao Kim Hourn speaks during a news conference held in conjunction with the 46th Asean Summit at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre on May 25, 2025. \u2014 Bernama pic As 46th summit opens in KL, Asean sec-gen reaffirms centrality, backs Malaysia\u2019s Myanmar leadership KUALA LUMPUR, May 26 \u2014 Asean Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":850,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-849","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international-news","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/849","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=849"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/849\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":851,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/849\/revisions\/851"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}