The Committee of Permanent Representatives to ASEAN (CPR) and the Deputy Secretaries-General of the ASEAN Secretariat meet with the United Nations delegation at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia.
19 April 2017, Jakarta – The Committee of Permanent Representatives (CPR) to ASEAN, led by its Chair, Philippine Ambassador Elizabeth P. Buensuceso, met with a high-level delegation of the United Nations (UN) to discuss ways of strengthening the ASEAN-UN partnership in pursuit of common goals. The UN delegation was led by 4 Senior Officials: Assistant Secretary General (ASG) for Political Affairs Mr. Miroslav Jenca, ASG and Regional Director for the UN Development Group Mr. Haoliang Xu, ASG for Humanitarian Affairs Mr. Rashid Khalikov and UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Deputy Executive Secretary Mr. Kaveh Zahedi.
Ambassador Buensuceso and ASG Jenca steered the discussions that primarily focused on the progress of the Plan of Action to Implement the Joint Declaration on the Comprehensive Partnership between ASEAN and the UN 2016-2020 (POA). The POA provides a map that will guide both sides in realizing the full benefits of the partnership for the next 5 years. It includes the current priority areas of cooperation and takes into account the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and the 2020 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
In her opening remarks, Ambassador Buensuceso expressed that the “Philippines has been given the privilege and the great responsibility of ASEAN Chairmanship during a milestone year of the 50th Anniversary of ASEAN.” She briefed on the various priorities of the Philippine Chairmanship, and highlighted the major commemorative activities and outcome documents expected in this landmark year, ranging from issues relating to Migrant Workers, the Civil Service, Violent Extremism to Maritime Security. In turn, ASG Jenca underscored that UN Secretary-General Guterres has given a great emphasis on the “importance of the ASEAN-UN strategic cooperation, particularly with respect to peace and security, human rights and development.”
The high-level meeting exchanged perspectives on how ASEAN and the UN can support each other’s respective global and regional agendas. The Meeting made several recommendations, notably in terms of concrete projects strategically focused to produce the widest positive ripple effect across cross-cutting issues of global concern.
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