APSC Blueprint 2015 Is Fully Implemented - M'sian Foreign Ministry Sec-Gen

By Rohani Ibrahim and Balqis Jamaludin KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 20 (Bernama) -- The ASEAN Senior Officials' Preparatory Meeting (Prep-SOM) is now looking at the implementation of the action lines under the ASEAN Political-Security Community (APSC) Blueprint 2025, after the full implementation of the APSC Blueprint 2015. Malaysian Foreign Ministry secretary-general Othman Hashim said that the meeting was happy to note that the APSC 2015 Blueprint, which was among the issues discussed during the Prep-SOM meeting concluded Thursday, had been fully implemented. "We have had extensive deliberation on a number of issues of mutual interest and discuss the preparation for the 27th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits that will be held in the next two days," he told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre here Thursday. Othman also said that ASEAN Foreign Ministers would meet Friday for the 13th APSC meeting and 17th ASEAN Coordinating Council Meeting. The issues discussed at Thursday's Prep-SOM meeting included the implementation of the Declaration of Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) and Consultations on the Code of Conduct (COC). He said that ASEAN member states also took note of the outcome of the 15th ASEAN-China Joint Working Group on the Implementation of the DOC and the 10th ASEAN-China SOM on DOC. According to Othman, another issue discussed was related to Timur Leste's application to become an ASEAN member and its implication on APSC. "Based on the report of the study on Timor Leste's membership application, ASEAN member states were hopeful that it could be completed by the first half of next year," he added. -- BERNAMA