ASEAN and China Foreign Ministers Meet on Consolidated COVID-19 Response

24 February 2020 — The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China held a Special Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (SFMM) on the 2019 Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) on 20 February 2020, in Vientiane, Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

As Country Coordinator for ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. co-chaired the meeting with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi. All ten foreign ministers of ASEAN attended in view of the urgency of the topic.

The Foreign Ministers exchanged views on COVID-19 and strengthening collaboration in dealing with the epidemic. They also discussed national, regional and global efforts to manage the epidemic, and possible practical measures to address it at the regional level. Lessons learned and insights from experiences were exchanged, especially on concerns that were shared by the countries.

The Foreign Ministers expressed condolences on the loss of lives, and extended sympathies to those still suffering and threatened by the disease. They also commended those who have worked courageously on the frontlines in battling the disease. All expressed confidence in China’s ability to overcome the epidemic.

The Meeting adopted a Statement on COVID-19 where the Foreign Ministers agreed to step up cooperation in the region, including sharing of information and best practices in a prompt manner, capacity building for decisive response, strengthening existing measures, optimizing ASEAN-led and ASEAN-China mechanisms, and initiatives with external partners to address COVID-19 in a comprehensive and effective manner. The SFMM also emphasized the role of risk communication and community engagement in ensuring that people receive accurate and timely information. These, and all other measures and initiatives that were discussed, are hoped to expedite the prevention and control of the epidemic so that ASEAN Member States, China, and the rest of the world can resume and enhance exchanges and cooperation. END

NOTE: Statement of the Special ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) may be downloaded HERE (https://asean.org/storage/2020/02/ASEAN-China-SFMM-Statement-on-COVID-19-20-Feb-2020-Final.pdf)