"We must be ready to make bold decisions, and we cannot let our differences prevent us from moving forward," she remarked in her opening statement at the 34th ASEAN Coordinating Council (ACC) Meeting in Jakarta.
As the 2023 chair of ASEAN, Indonesia is hosting the 34th ACC Meeting and will hold the 43rd ASEAN Summit on September 5-7 in the capital city while carrying the chairmanship theme of "ASEAN Matters: Epicentrum of Growth."
The upcoming summit will be the second summit to be held this year following the 42nd ASEAN Summit organized successfully in May in Labuan Bajo, East Nusa Tenggara Province, where the bloc's leaders produced various important documents and statements.
The ACC itself functions as a supervisory council that is tasked by ASEAN leaders with overseeing the formulation and implementation of documents.
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Before being agreed at a summit, documents must be approved by the association's Political and Security Council (APSC), Socio-Cultural Community Council (ASCC), and Economic Community (AEC).
During the 34th ACC Meeting, Marsudi emphasized that the ACC should be able to recommend the best course of actions for the leaders of ASEAN to decide.
"In this (upcoming 43rd) summit, we will adopt many important decisions that would chart the future of ASEAN as a community and an institution," she stated.
She said that the decisions include measures that can be taken to expedite the ASEAN decision-making process in crises and emergency situations as well as strengthen ASEAN's capacity to respond to emerging challenges in the Southeast Asian region.
Marsudi then reminded the participating delegates that ASEAN is currently facing various fateful challenges and opportunities, noting that the bloc's credibility and relevance are at stake.
"Whether ASEAN can move forward or not entirely depends on us," she affirmed.
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Translator: Cindy Frishanti, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Anton Santoso
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