ASEAN and Denmark reaffirmed good bilateral relations, especially in such sectors as green technology, agriculture, education, social welfare and peaceful settlement of disputes.
ASEAN secretary General Le Luong Minh met Denmark’s Minister for Foreign Affairs,Villy Søvndal, on Wednesday. During the occasion, the Denmark minister said that he follows the developments in the region with keen interest.
He added that Denmark has been seeking ways and means to develop good relations with the countries in the region as well as with ASEAN.
He was encouraged by the achievements that ASEAN has made, particularly in political cooperation, economic development and the promotion and protection of human rights through the establishment of ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights.
Meanwhile, in his statement to welcome Villy Søvndal, Le Luong Minhexplained the recent developments in ASEAN and expressed appreciation to the support rendered by Denmark to ASEAN bilaterally as well as through the ASEAN-EU cooperation framework, particularly at a time when ASEAN is pressing ahead with its Community building efforts.
Minh stated that while good progress has been made towards achieving the goal, there remain enormous challenges that would require more concerted efforts by ASEAN to commence ASEAN Community in 2015.
Minh also expressed optimism that the achievements made by ASEAN would enable the bloc toforge ahead with a more comprehensive cooperation agenda beyond 2015.
Minh pointed out that to realize the vision, the region would need to maintain the environment conducive for peace and stability.
Source: China Daily
