TIRTAPOS.COM – As the chair of ASEAN in 2023, Indonesia has reaffirmed ASEAN’s commitment to strengthen unity and solidarity, as well as enhance the centrality of ASEAN in maintaining peace and stability in the region.
President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo (Jokowi), conveyed this message during a courtesy visit by ASEAN foreign ministers and partner countries at the Sangri-La Hotel in Central Jakarta on Friday morning, July 14, 2023.
“ASEAN must not become a battleground, nor a proxy for any country, and international law must be consistently respected,” stated the President.
The President also expressed his hope for genuine cooperation and support from ASEAN’s partners and guests. He believed that ASEAN has immense potential to become a center of growth or an epicenter of growth, with its abundant productive workforce and natural resources.
“We, the ASEAN countries, the developing nations, need understanding, wisdom, and support from both developed countries and friendly nations to abandon zero-sum approaches and adopt mutually beneficial approaches,” he said.
Concluding his address, the President emphasized that Indonesia’s chairmanship in ASEAN would be utilized to increase ASEAN’s contribution to the success of the Indo-Pacific region and the world.
“There is a proverb in Indonesia, which says ‘to win without making others lose,’ meaning we can be winners without belittling others, without defeating others. Therefore, I invite all of us to become honorable winners, to win without making others lose,” he concluded. **
