Asean’s foreign ministers gather in Singapore to chart out 2018 priorities

SINGAPORE — Singapore will host the annual Association of South-east Asian Nations (Asean) Foreign Ministers’ Retreat from Sunday (Feb 4) to Tuesday, the first gathering of regional foreign ministers hosted by the Republic during its 2018 chairmanship of the grouping.

The retreat, which will be held at JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach, will be chaired by Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan, said a press statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) on Sunday.

“Following Asean’s 50th anniversary milestone last year, the Retreat will be a useful and timely opportunity for the Foreign Ministers to discuss the way forward for the Asean Community,” said the statement.

The MFA added that the foreign ministers will discuss Asean’s priorities in line with the 2018 themes of “Resilience” and “Innovation”.

“The Foreign Ministers will also exchange views on regional and international developments,” it added.

More specifically, the ministers are expected to discuss an Asean vision statement and the setting up of a network of smart cities in the region. Discussions on how to combat the threat of terrorism is also believed to be high on the agenda.

Dr Tang Siew Mun, Head of the Asean Studies Centre at Iseas-Yusof Ishak Institute told TODAY that the foreign ministers’ retreat is usually the curtain raiser for a country’s chairmanship before the big unveiling at the Asean Summit in April.

He added that these retreats are usually smooth sailing affairs with the focus on agreement on the year’s agenda and priorities.

“The Retreat symbolises Asean’s time tested tradition of consultation and consensus.”