Russian President Vladimir Putin and Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. have delivered a joint address at the Russia-ASEAN summit in Kazan. The Philippines holds the rotating chairmanship of the group this year.
The two presidents delivered the address at the conclusion of the second day of the summit, which was also attended by the leaders of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, East Timor, and Vietnam.
The summit has “clearly demonstrated the genuine interest of both Russia and the states of Southeast Asia in further developing mutually beneficial cooperation, building upon time-tested traditions of friendship and the accumulated experience of a multifaceted and fruitful partnership,” Putin stated.
Marcos expressed his gratitude to Putin on behalf of all the ASEAN nations for a warm welcome at the summit, stating the group hopes to “strengthen cooperation in security, politics, economics, and culture” with Russia.
“We exchanged views on promoting peace, stability, sustainable development, strengthening food and energy security, facilitating trade and investment, advancing scientific and technological progress, and deepening people-to-people ties,” the president said.
Earlier in the day, the participants of the summit, which marks the 35th anniversary of the establishment of ties between Russia and ASEAN, adopted a joint declaration hailing the event as a “significant milestone” in their partnership.
The declaration also affirmed “a common aspiration, amid increasingly complex global challenges arising from geopolitical and geo-economic shifts, towards a just multipolar world as guided by international law and the principles of the UN Charter to promote mutual benefit and respect for all states.” The signees vowed to continue strengthening ties in various fields, including trade and investment, energy and food, maritime cooperation, security, combatting transnational crime and other areas.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the summit, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Putin discussed the Ukraine conflict with the ASEAN leaders, among other issues. “There was a detailed discussion about Ukraine, he briefed everyone in detail on how the situation is developing and our assessment of the actions of the Kiev regime,” the top diplomat said.