Japan highlights ASEAN’s centrality in Indo-Pacific region

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi delivers a speech at the ASEAN Secretariat’s headquarters on January 10 (Photo: asean.org)

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi on January 10 stressed ASEAN’s central role and described this as an essential driver of development in the whole Indo-Pacific region.

Delivering a speech at the ASEAN Secretariat’s headquarters in Jakarta, he said Tokyo completely supports the targets set in the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific and holds that this region is the core of the global dynamism.

He said to ensure a stable economic and social environment and enjoy the prosperous development in the Indo-Pacific region, the regional architecture needs to be adjusted by clear and transparent rules.

The Japanese minister emphasised that in the region’s sea areas, all countries must act and exercise their rights in accordance with the basic principles of international law. Besides, all sea-related disputes must be resolved in a peaceful manner.

He also affirmed upholding law is the prerequisite for ensuring the truly prosperous development in the Indo-Pacific, adding that one indispensable thing in building any regional architecture is to ensure the respect for law and base on principles of international law.

In his lecture, Motegi highlighted the three pillars of Japan-ASEAN relations, namely cooperating to develop human resources, creating frameworks like the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), and sharing experience in different fields like infrastructure development./.

VNA