ASEAN HEADLINE-48TH ASEAN SUMMIT PHILIPPINES 2026 | LAPU-LAPU CITY, Cebu: ‘Asean must unite amid Mideast crisis’

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“The work of Asean must continue, not despite the challenges, but because the times demand our answers to those challenges,” he said.

Attending the summit were Brunei Darussalam Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, Timor-Leste Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão and Vietnamese Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng.

Myanmar was represented by U Hau Khan Sum, permanent secretary of its Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A draft of the declaration expected to be approved at the end of the summit called on Asean leaders to strengthen regional energy security, and “secure and open sea lanes.

While the draft does not specifically mention the Strait of Hormuz, which has been largely bottled up since US-Israeli strikes on Iran began on Feb. 28, it will call for “the safe, unimpeded and continuous transit passage of vessels and aircraft in straits used for international navigation.”

The document also includes a range of proposals aimed at promoting greater energy independence, including an expansion of the Asean power grid, a shift to renewable energy and even the exploration of nuclear power.

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Closer to home, the civil war in Myanmar remained center-stage on Thursday, with Asean Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn telling reporters the possibility of a meeting with the country’s foreign minister was on the table.

Myanmar has been formally excluded from summits such as the one in Cebu since its military junta snatched power in a 2021 coup that triggered a bloody civil war and crackdown on dissent.

While Myanmar’s junta earned praise from the Philippines this week for its decision to transfer democracy figurehead Aung San Suu Kyi to house arrest, the bloc has yet to achieve a consensus on a return to the fold for the country.

“The foreign ministers had an exchange of views, including a proposal to have a meeting with the foreign minister of Myanmar,” Hourn told reporters on the summit sidelines on Thursday.

Thursday also saw the late addition of previously unannounced talks between the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia.

The Southeast Asian neighbors have maintained an uneasy truce since signing a ceasefire agreement in late December after a border dispute triggered clashes that killed dozens of people and displaced more than a million others.

Charnvirakul and Manet both pledged on Thursday to task their foreign ministers with continuing talks aimed at achieving a lasting peace.

Both sides have traded accusations of truce violations since the ceasefire was signed.

At a meeting at the sidelines of the leaders’ summit arranged by the Philippines under its Asean chairmanship, the Thai and Cambodian leaders “reaffirmed the importance of maintaining open communication, exercising restraint, avoiding actions that may escalate tensions and continuing efforts toward peaceful dialogue and constructive engagement,” Marcos said.

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The meeting also affirmed the continued role of the Asean Observer Team (AOT), which monitors and verifies the implementation of agreements between the two countries. Marcos welcomed the extension of the AOT mandate for another three months until July.

 

Speaking earlier at the retreat session for the Asean leaders, the president warned that the fallout of the ongoing conflicts and economic disruptions will continue to be felt for years even, when tensions eventually ease.

“And while the impact may differ from country to country in Asean at present, there is no denying that this disruption will have an impact on the future,” he said.

“Even if the tensions de-escalate in time, the damage to critical infrastructure, to vital systems, and trust in general will continue to be felt for years to come.”

The president said Asean had anticipated many of these risks under the Asean Community Vision 2045, which identified supply chain disruptions, resource security concerns and major power rivalries as long-term regional challenges.

“The recent crisis is a stark reminder of how vulnerable our economies remain to sudden shifts in the international order and, consequently, the global economy,” he said.

“A few weeks’ worth of disruptions will take years to be corrected, testing not just our governments, but also our communities.”

The region, with a population of nearly 700 million people and economies worth a combined $3.8 trillion, faces significant risks from the Iran war, and the Philippines — among the first countries in the world to declare an energy emergency — has pushed for approval of a voluntary, commercial-based Asean oil-sharing framework agreement.

But coordination remains a big challenge for Asean. Despite rapid growth of its individual economies, integration has been slow, with vast differences between its members and no central authority to ensure compliance with Asean agreements and initiatives.

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ASEAN CHAIRMAN President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his remarks during the 48th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit in Cebu, central Philippines, on May 8, 2026. AFP PHOTO

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Asean leaders stressed the need to create mechanisms to withstand future crises, with Indonesia’s Subianto saying energy supply pressures were very high and would not ease anytime soon.

“Asean must be ready for a long-term disruption. Our resilience must be built proactively with a clear forward-looking approach. This means we must be ready for any eventualities,” he said.

In a reference to the South China Sea and the 900-kilometer-long Malacca Strait, the world’s busiest waterway for international trade, Prabowo said it was vital Asean prevent trade route disruptions in its own backyard.

His remarks come just two weeks after his own finance minister made waves by openly musing about ways countries could impose tolls ​on ships as a way to monetize the strait, before noting it would not be possible.

The Asean leaders are expected to call for a negotiated settlement between the United States and Iran as well as a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for about 130 vessels a day and a fifth of the world’s oil and gas supplies prior to the conflict.

Leaders will urge

Asean members to complete the domestic processes required to approve a fuel-sharing pact, ensuring its “earliest possible entry into force,” according to a working draft of a statement seen by Reuters on Thursday.

In another key meeting on Thursday, leaders of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines approved the BIMP-EAGA (Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East Asean Growth Area) Vision 2035, setting a new 10-year direction for regional cooperation focused on underserved areas such as Mindanao and Palawan.

Secretary Leo Tereso Magno, chairman of the Mindanao Development Authority, said the BIMP-EAGA conference marked “a very defining moment” for the four countries.

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During a press briefing on Friday, Magno said Vision 2035 aligns with the original purpose of the cooperation framework, which seeks to develop geographically remote and underserved areas in the four countries.

“This is to make sure that the underserved areas within the four countries, particularly the whole of the sultanate of Brunei, and for the Philippines — Mindanao and Palawan, areas in Indonesia and in Malaysia,” Magno said.

Magno said leaders approved the conceptual framework for the new road map during last year’s meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The four neighbors, with guidance from the Asian Development Bank, spent the past year crafting the detailed framework adopted during the summit, he said.​

At the end of their summit, the leaders issued a joint statement reaffirming their commitment to advancing BIMP-EAGA as “a dynamic platform for subregional cooperation.”

Under the new framework, member countries agreed to pursue four strategic outcomes: climate-smart agro-industry and fisheries, seamless travel and sustainable tourism, stronger production hubs that improve competitiveness, and an agile and future-ready workforce.

Magno said the bloc started with 57 priority infrastructure projects in 2015.

He said the number increased to 217 projects last year and reached 265 projects this year.

.By
Philippine News Agency ,
Agence France-Presse ,

Kaiser Jan Fuentes  and Reuters

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