Dewan Rakyat speaker to lead M'sian delegation to ASEAN Summits

PUTRAJAYA: Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun, in his capacity as the Special Representative to the Prime Minister will lead the Malaysian delegation to the 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits and Related Summits in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, from Nov 10 to 13.

Aside from the ASEAN Summits, he will also participate in the ASEAN Plus One Summits with Leaders from Australia, Canada, China, India, Japan, South Korea, United States, the United Nations, as well as the ASEAN Plus Three Summit and East Asia Summit (EAS).

At the sidelines of ASEAN Summits, Malaysia will also be participating in the ASEAN Leaders' Interface Sessions with Representatives of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA), ASEAN Youth and ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN- BAC), the Foreign Ministry said in statement Thursday.

The ASEAN Leaders and Representatives will also be granted an audience with the King of Cambodia, His Majesty Preah Bat Samdech Preah Boromneath Norodom Sihamoni.

"Malaysia's participation at the ASEAN Summits reflects its unwavering commitment to ASEAN, including in the promotion of ASEAN Centrality and unity, community-building efforts and continued engagement and cooperation with ASEAN's Dialogue Partners and external parties, amidst heightened geopolitical tensions at the global level and challenging regional dynamics.

"Malaysia will also be reiterating its position regarding the situation in Myanmar and calling for a more decisive stance by ASEAN in discussions at the ASEAN Summits," the statement read.

The theme of this year's ASEAN Summits and Related Summits is "ASEAN A.C.T.: Addressing Challenges Together".

-- BERNAMA