FOREIGN MINISTRY SEC-GEN MEETS PHILIPPINE, INDONESIAN OFFICIALS ON AMM RETREAT SIDELINES

CEBU CITY, Jan 27 (Bernama)  — Secretary-General of the Foreign Ministry, Datuk Seri Amran Mohamed Zin, held bilateral meetings with senior officials from the Philippines and Indonesia on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM) Retreat here on Tuesday.

In a Facebook post, the Foreign Ministry said Amran, who is also Malaysia’s ASEAN Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) leader, held a bilateral meeting with the Philippines’ ASEAN SOM leader and Undersecretary for Policy, Leo M. Herrera-Lim and Indonesia’s ASEAN SOM leader and Director-General of ASEAN Cooperation, Ina Hagniningtyas Krisnamurthi.

“Discussions covered preparations for the AMM Retreat and Related Meetings, the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC), the South China Sea, the situation in Myanmar, and other bilateral issues of mutual interest,” it stated. 

The Secretary-General took the opportunity to congratulate the Philippines on assuming the ASEAN Chair for 2026 and expressed Malaysia’s full support for its Chairmanship.

The meeting also served as an introductory engagement with Indonesia’s new ASEAN senior officials, providing an opportunity for both sides to exchange views on issues of mutual interest related to ASEAN. 

Amran and his delegation are in Cebu in conjunction with the AMM Retreat, which will kick off on Wednesday.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan will lead the Malaysian delegation to the AMM Retreat and related meetings. 

The AMM Retreat marks the first official ASEAN meeting of the year under the Philippines’ ASEAN Chairmanship, with the theme “Navigating Our Future, Together”.

In a statement, Foreign Ministry said the  AMM Retreat provides Malaysia and other ASEAN member states with a valuable platform to strengthen collective efforts in building an inclusive, sustainable, and resilient ASEAN Community, especially amid evolving geopolitical and geoeconomic dynamics and uncertainties.

-- BERNAMA