ASEAN and the United States (U.S) reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening their dialogue relations at the 13th Meeting of the ASEAN-U.S. Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) held at the ASEAN Secretariat on 12 April.
The meeting took note that the long-standing ASEAN-U.S. partnership has expanded to cover a wide range of areas of cooperation undertaken across the three pillars of ASEAN Community.
To this end, officials from both sides noted the progress made in the implementation of the ASEAN-U.S. Plan of Action (2021-2025), which will continue to support efforts of ASEAN in promoting peace, security, and prosperity in the region.
The meeting underscored the importance of enhancing cooperation in the following key areas such as; trade and investment advancement of Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Agenda; trade facilitation, digital economy, transport, smart cities, green infrastructure, and connectivity; Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs); public health emergencies; people-to-people exchange and education; environment, climate change, sustainable development, and renewable energy; among others. The meeting also discussed regional and international issues of mutual concern.
The meeting commended the U.S.’ revitalised engagement with ASEAN, which was demonstrated through its leadership in ensuring equitable and affordable access to vaccines in the region and its support for ASEAN’s efforts in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic.
This includes its support through the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund and the launch of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention Regional Office in Ha Noi, Viet Nam in October last year, as well as the possible expansion of ASEAN-U.S. collaboration in the health sector.
Both sides looked forward to the commemorative activities to be implemented to mark the 45th Anniversary of ASEAN-U.S. Dialogue Relations this year.
M.I. Derry Aman, Permanent Representative of Indonesia to ASEAN, and Kate Rebholz, Chargé d’Affaires of the U.S. Mission to ASEAN, co-chaired the meeting.
The Permanent Representatives of ASEAN Member States/their representatives, the Deputy Secretary-General for ASEAN Political Security Community as well as officials from the ASEAN Secretariat and the U.S. Mission to ASEAN also attended the meeting.
