H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Minister of Foreign Affairs, is scheduled to attend the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat (AMM Retreat) from 26-27 February 2016 in Vientiane, Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). The Retreat aims to set the direction of ASEAN in 2016 after the establishment of ASEAN Community last year.

         The Retreat is the first ASEAN meeting at the ministerial level to be held under the ASEAN Chairmanship of Lao PDR in 2016. The theme of its chairmanship is “Turning Vision into Reality for a Dynamic ASEAN Community” The Retreat will focus on two sets of issues: (1) ASEAN issues and priorities under Lao PDR’s ASEAN Chairmanship 2016 and (2) External Relations and ASEAN Centrality.

         At the Retreat, the Foreign Minister will follow up on the issues that H.E. the Prime Minister of Thailand proposed at the 27^th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur last November including enhancing regional connectivity and increasing cooperation to address challenges such as transnational crimes that may arise from enhanced connectivity. Meanwhile, the Foreign Minister will place emphasis on strengthening the role of the ASEAN Secretariat and related mechanisms in order to enhance the effectiveness of ASEAN in responding to challenges. The meeting will also discuss how ASEAN could play more constructive roles in the Asia-Pacific region as well as in international fora.