Jakarta (ANTARA) – Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi invited all ASEAN member countries to work together to maintain peace in the region, amidst the world’s volatile geopolitical conditions.
“I think we shouldn’t take ‘peace’ for granted. It’s not something that falls from the sky… We really have to look after it. ASEAN needs to work hard to maintain peace, especially now when the world is clearly not all right ,” said Foreign Minister Retno.
This statement was made by Foreign Minister Retno in her remarks at the 7th ASEAN Media Forum which was held at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta on Tuesday.
According to Retno, member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) “should be grateful for having been blessed with peace and stability in this region for more than five decades.
He said that the world was not in a good condition, characterized by increasingly sharp competition between big countries, an increasingly divided world, food and energy crises, and ongoing wars – such as the Russia-Ukraine war.
Apart from that, in the ASEAN region itself there is still a political crisis in Myanmar.
“Therefore, our (Indonesian) leadership aims to overcome these challenges,” said Retno.
The Indonesian Foreign Minister emphasized that in facing increasingly turbulent world conditions, an ASEAN that is capable and agile is needed to overcome, not only current challenges, but also future challenges.
Apart from that, continued Retno, ASEAN must continue to be relevant and important to achieve success
maintaining the Southeast Asia region as the epicenter of growth.
Source: ANTARA News