THE ASEAN Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) began today at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, marking a critical stage in the lead-up to the 46th ASEAN Summit, scheduled for 26–27 May.
Commencing at 8:30am, the session gathers ASEAN SOM Leaders, representatives from Timor-Leste, and officials from the ASEAN Secretariat, with the primary aim of aligning positions on pressing regional matters before deliberations at the Heads of State/Government level.
Following a working lunch, the SOM will resume this afternoon with a series of informal consultations on the Five-Point Consensus—ASEAN’s agreed framework for addressing the ongoing crisis in Myanmar.
These discussions are set to begin at 4:00pm and will initially include selected ASEAN Foreign Ministers and senior envoys from Malaysia, Laos, and the Philippines, before broadening to encompass wider ASEAN representation. The bloc’s collective response to Myanmar will be shaped by the outcome of these deliberations.
In a shift from formal diplomacy to more informal exchanges, the day will conclude with a welcome dinner hosted by Malaysia’s Foreign Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan. Held at the Petronas Club, the dinner will bring together Foreign Ministers from ASEAN, Timor-Leste, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and China, and will serve as the first official high-level event of the week.
Simultaneously, the economic agenda gains traction with the Preparatory Senior Economic Officials’ Meeting (Prep-SEOM), which will lay the foundation for the 25th ASEAN Economic Community Council. The Prep-SEOM traditionally serves to refine economic priorities across trade, investment, and sustainability.
This year’s ASEAN Summit, themed "Inclusivity and Sustainability", is anticipated to carry particular weight as it includes the 2nd ASEAN-GCC Summit and the inaugural ASEAN-GCC-China Summit—both seen as milestones in ASEAN’s deepening engagement with strategic international partners. - May 24, 2025
