By Anthony Marcus for Eurasia Business News, May 26, 2025. Article no. 1529.
The 46th ASEAN Summit (Retreat) was held on May 26, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, under Malaysia’s chairmanship for 2025. The summit’s theme was “Inclusivity and Sustainability,” focusing on promoting equitable development, resilience, solidarity, and joint responses to challenges such as climate change, energy security, transnational crime, and natural disasters.
Key highlights from the retreat include :
Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized strengthening ASEAN’s internal unity and capacity. He urged enhancing intra-regional trade and investment by leveraging digital transformation, green transition, and improving connectivity in energy and transport to facilitate goods flow.
PM Chinh supported early completion of the Digital Economy Framework Agreement, upgrading the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA), and better utilization of economic connectivity networks like the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). He also advocated completing free trade agreements with Canada and upgrading FTAs with China and India to diversify markets and supply chains.
On regional security, PM Chinh stressed ASEAN’s central role in addressing the complex situation in the East Sea (South China Sea), calling for solidarity and a principled stance to maintain peace and stability.
Regarding Myanmar, the summit welcomed ASEAN Chair Malaysia’s mediation efforts on the Five-Point Consensus and prioritized humanitarian aid to support earthquake recovery. Vietnam contributed 60 tons of supplies and personnel to relief efforts and pledged to work with ASEAN members for dialogue and reconciliation in Myanmar.
The summit also marked the 10th anniversary of the ASEAN Community, reflecting on its achievements in political-security, economic, and socio-cultural integration. ASEAN’s economic community is projected to grow at 4.7% in 2025, aiming to become the world’s fourth-largest economy by 2030.
A major agenda item was the anticipated adoption of the ASEAN Community Vision 2045, a long-term framework to build a cohesive, resilient, and forward-looking ASEAN community over the next two decades.
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The plenary session included participation from ASEAN leaders, Timor-Leste, and other partners, with discussions on regional cooperation and global challenges.
Overall, the 46th ASEAN Summit Retreat reinforced ASEAN’s commitment to unity, sustainable development, and proactive regional cooperation amid global uncertainties.
The ASEAN economy is projected to grow at 4.7% in 2025, up from 4.2% in 2024, according to Investment, Trade and Industry Minister of Malaysia, Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz. This growth forecast was presented at the 25th ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Council meeting held alongside the 46th ASEAN Summit.
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The inflation rate for the region is expected to be around 3% in 2025. The growth is driven primarily by strong exports and public capital spending in the larger ASEAN economies. However, there are downside risks due to external economic uncertainties.
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© Copyright 2025 – Eurasia Business News. Article no. 1529.
Eurasia Business News 