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Transcript E&OE
Sonexay Siphandone, Prime Minister of Laos
Thank you, Your Excellency, My Co-chair. Your Excellency, Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister of Australia. Your majesty, Excellency, Leaders of ASEAN and Timor Leste, Secretary General of ASEAN. At the outset, it is with my great pleasure that I, in my capacity as the ASEAN Chair and the Country coordinator for ASEAN-Australia, Dialogue Relations Co-Chair this special Summit to commemorate the 50th anniversary of ASEAN-Australia Dialogue Relations. I extend my sincere appreciations to His Excellency, Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister of Australia, for the warm welcome and hospitality extended to the Laos delegation and excellent arrangement made for this important summit. This year marks 57 years of ASEAN establishment and 50 years of ASEAN-Australia dialogue relations.
These numbers affirm that Australia is ASEAN’s oldest and closest friend and its most long standing and important dialogue partner. Australia has been engaging with ASEAN throughout its evolution since the inceptions of our dialogue relations in 1974. Over the years, ASEAN-Australia cooperation has consistently grown and broadened, covering a wide range of areas including political, security, economic and social cultural cooperation. This enduring partnership culminated in the elevation of our dialogue relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2021. ASEAN greatly appreciate Australia’s consistent support for ASEAN centrality which contributes significantly to strengthening the ASEAN community building process and to our shared goals of maintaining and promoting peace, stability and development of the region and beyond.
ASEAN has a strong commitment and aspirations to further advance and deepen ASEAN-Australia cooperation in the coming years. Today’s Special Summit offers an excellent opportunity for the leaders of ASEAN and Australia to commemorate the substantial achievements of ASEAN-Australia dialogue relations over the past five decades and to chart the course for even deeper relations in the next 50 years. I'm confident that the ASEAN-Australia Leaders Vision Statement: partners for peace and prosperity and the Melbourne Decorations: our partner for future, which are said to be adopted later on at this meeting, will provide strategic and comprehensive guidance for the future enhancement of ASEAN-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership in the next 50 years.
This as the Laos PDR assumes the ASEAN chairmanship under the theme ASEAN: enhancing connectivity and resilience, we are confident that boosting us in connectivity and resilience will significantly contribute to a more fruitful ASEAN-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership. I thank you.