H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, attended the Special ASEAN-Australia Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) via videoconference in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, mitigating its socio-economic impacts, and strengthening cooperation for a sustainable post COVID-19 Recovery.

On 30 June 2020, H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, attended the Special ASEAN-Australia Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) via videoconference. H.E. Dato’ Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia, as the Country Coordinator for ASEAN-Australia Dialogue Relations, co-chaired the Meeting with Senator the Hon. Marise Payne, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women of Australia. A Co-Chairs’ Statement of the Meeting will be further issued as an outcome document of the Meeting.

The Meeting discussed ASEAN-Australia cooperation in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic through strengthening public health cooperation and mitigating socio-economic impacts on the people and businesses in ASEAN.

On this occasion, the Foreign Minister underscored the importance of the international community, including ASEAN and Australia, in working together to recover and ‘build back better’ in this post-COVID-19 world, whether it is the economy, society or the environment. The Foreign Minister also highlighted the need to foster and promote a stable and peaceful environment that will be conducive for recovery to succeed. Under the ASEAN-Australia framework, the Foreign Minister encouraged exchanging information and collaborating on vaccines and anti-viral medicines, which once available should be ‘global public goods’ at affordable price. The Foreign Minister also encouraged both sides to work towards the signing of the RCEP within this year,  enhance digital economy to support businesses, especially MSMEs, as well as enhance necessary digital skills for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The Foreign Minister invited Australia to support the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund and to work with the ASEAN Centre for Sustainable Development Studies and Dialogue on sustainable cooperation projects to build regional resilience against future emergencies.

ASEAN and Australia have entered into the 46th year of its Dialogue Relations this year. Australia is ASEAN’s first Dialogue Partner and is a Strategic Partner of ASEAN that has supported ASEAN across the 3 pillars. This Meeting is another demonstration of ASEAN and Australia’s mutual determination in addressing the COVID-19 and its impacts on the region for a sustainable recovery.