Article “Russia-ASEAN Cooperation: Navigating Challenges and Building a Strategic Partnership in a Multipolar World” by H.E. Nikolay Kudashev, the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Singapore.

August 8, 2023

“Today, on the ASEAN Day, let me address the situation in Asia and the Pacific, which is a vivid example on how global currents influence local soil.

For Russia one of the key integral elements of regional layout is Strategic Partnership with ASEAN, announced in Singapore during the 4th Russia-ASEAN summit in 2018. The year of 2023 is remarkable as far as we celebrate the 5th Anniversary of this event, though the overall history of our relationship with the Association goes back to 30 years more.”

Read in full: https://alamak.io/2023/08/08/russia-asean-cooperation-navigating-challenges-and-building-a-strategic-partnership-in-a-multipolar-world/

🗓 Every year on August 8, the ten member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) mark ASEAN Day. This date was approved by the ASEAN Standing Committee at its annual meeting in May 2005.

🌏 ASEAN was founded in Bangkok on August 8, 1967, by Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and the Philippines, which signed the so-called Bangkok Declaration. Later, this regional organisation was joined by Brunei (1984), Vietnam (1995), Laos and Myanmar (1997), and Cambodia (1999).

ASEAN is one of the most successful regional organisations. It has a broad network of various intergovernmental associations involving Russia and other leading world powers: the East Asia Summit (#EAS), ASEAN Regional Forum (#ARF), and ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting-Plus (#ADMMPlus).

☝️ Promoting ties with ASEAN is Russia’s key foreign policy priority in Asia. The Russian Permanent Mission to ASEAN has been based in Jakarta since 2017. In 2018, Russia-ASEAN relations reached the level of strategic partnership, resulting in closer coordination on current global and regional issues with the ten member countries at leading multilateral venues, including the UN.

🤝 On July 12-14, 2023, Sergey Lavrov attended foreign ministers’ meetings in Jakarta, held in the Russia-ASEAN, EAS, and ARF formats.

💬 President Vladimir Putin at the Russia-ASEAN Summit (October 28, 2021): "Strengthening ties with ASEAN and its member states has always been and remains one of Russia's foreign policy priorities. <...> I would like to point out that the positions of Russia and the ASEAN states on key global and regional matters are similar in many respects. Most importantly, we all support the expansion of equal and mutually beneficial cooperation in the vast Asia-Pacific space."

#RussiaASEAN

📢 Dear friends, don't miss an opportunity to join ASEAN-Russia E-Commerce Cooperation Roundtable organized by the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia 🇷🇺 and the ASEAN Secretariat.

🚩The Roundtable will be held online tomorrow on 10 August 2023 at 02.00 PM - 06.00 PM (Jakarta time).

Participants will discuss:
🔹️ Regulatory approaches to digital economy and e-commerce in Russia and #ASEAN, including consumer protection, logistics and e-payment;
🔹️ Access to e-commerce platforms: best practices and services for business, including MSMEs;
🔹️Opportunities and challenges of entering foreign e-commerce marketplaces.

🤝We look forward to welcoming ASEAN friends at the Roundtable.

🇮🇩 On August 17, Indonesia marks the 78th Anniversary of Independence.

The Republic of Indonesia was declared in 1945, putting an end to the period of foreign domination that began in the 16th century, when Portugal, Britain, Netherlands and Japan successively sought to take control of the legendary Spice Islands.

🤝 Diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and Indonesia were established on February 3, 1950. The USSR played an important role in the rise of the new state, providing the archipelago with broad political and economic support.

🇷🇺🇮🇩 Russian-Indonesian ties have always relied on respect and trust. The accumulated potential for mutually beneficial cooperation is evidence of a true partnership between the two countries.

Today, our relations continue to evolve progressively. Moscow and Jakarta maintain an intensive political dialogue, including at the top level. The ministries, parliaments, as well as companies and corporations on both sides have channels for regular interaction. Extensive humanitarian cooperation contributes to strengthening the atmosphere of friendship between the people in our countries.

🎉 We extend greetings to our Indonesian friends on their national holiday. We wish them peace, prosperity and all the very best!

🗓 On August 21, the delegation of the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation 🇷🇺 took part in the 12th ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM)-Russia Consultation in Semarang, Indonesia 🇮🇩.

🔹️The parties discussed tangible outcomes of the ASEAN-Russia Trade and Investment Work Programme 2021-2025 and highlighted key projects in the following spheres: food and energy security, trade liberalisation, stability of financial system and payments, tourism promotion, digital and creative economy.

🔹️Special attention was paid to the digital economy, specifically e-commerce. The Russian side expressed its appreciation to the #ASEAN partners for participating in the ASEAN-Russia E-Commerce Cooperation Roundtable held online on August 10.

🔹️Russia proposed to further strengthen cooperation in the areas of regulatory policy, digital economy and mitigation of impact of climate change.

🗓 On August 23, the 8th ASEAN-Russia Senior Officials' Meeting on Agriculture (#ARSOMA) took place online under the co-chairmanship of Lao PDR 🇱🇦 and Russia 🇷🇺.

🔹️Participants discussed progress achieved under the ASEAN-Russia Agriculture and Food Security Work Programme 2021-2025.

🔹️The meeting discussed new projects and overviewed the implementation of ongoing projects under the #ASEAN-Russia Dialogue Partnership Financial Fund covering wastewater treatment and water management, sustainable agriculture development, innovative technologies in agriculture, soil degradation etc.

ASEAN Disaster Resilience Forum kicks off in Singapore

🔗 https://en.mchs.gov.ru/for-mass-media/novosti/5087838

The opening of the First Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Disaster Resilience Forum was held on August 22. The Secretary of State, Deputy Head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia Alexey Serko took part in the Forum.

As part of the first day of the Forum, a bilateral meeting was held with the head of the Singapore Civil Defense Forces, Eric Yap.

During the working meeting, topical issues of joint work and further interaction between the rescue departments of the two countries were discussed.

A practical step in the field of interaction could be the exchange of experience in the field of education and training of fire and rescue specialists, in particular, programs for additional education and advanced training in state universities. Eric Yap also accepted the invitation of the Russian side to visit the International Salon of Security Equipment "Integrated Security-2024".

According to Alexey Serko, the EMERCOM of Russia is ready to assist in the development of fire and rescue sports in Singapore, in the preparation of the national team and entry into the International Sports Federation of Firefighters and Rescuers.

The parties also discussed the possibility of exchanging best practices in the field of fire safety in megacities, taking into account the increasing scale of high-rise buildings, where it is difficult to save people in case of emergency. Therefore, the emphasis in this work should be on preventive measures.

Representatives of the two departments also discussed the possibility of joint work in multilateral formats such as ASEAN and INSARAG. In 2021, a Memorandum of Understanding and Cooperation in the field of prevention and elimination of emergencies was signed between the Russian Federation and ASEAN. This makes it possible to consider the issue of including the Khabarovsk search and rescue team, certified according to the INSARAG methodology, in a special list of ASEAN responding units.

At the moment, Russia is the only country in the world with three state certified rescue teams according to the INSARAG methodology. The participation of Russian rescuers in joint training and exercises will serve as a good opportunity to exchange experience with their colleagues from the top ten countries.

Concluding the meeting, the parties thanked each other for the constructive dialogue and development of further cooperation between the countries in the field of combating emergencies. Also on the first day of the Forum, issues of multilateral cooperation with ASEAN on the topic of resilience to natural disasters were discussed with foreign partners.