South Africa Signs Accession to ASEAN Treaty of Amity, Cooperation

South African Minister for International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor signs the ASEAN TAC for South Africa.

PRETORIA 19 November 2020 – South Africa has acceded to the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC). Minister for International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor signed the treaty for South Africa on 10 November 2020 in Cape Town.

The ASEAN Treaty of Amity and Cooperation is one of the foundational treaties of the ASEAN. The treaty stated as its avowed intent is to foster perpetual peace, everlasting amity, and cooperation among the parties of the treaty. South Africa would be the third country in the African continent to accede to the treaty, after Morocco and Egypt.

Minister Pandor recalled that South Africa’s accession to the ASEAN TAC has been in the making since former President Nelson Mandela visited the ASEAN countries soon after the democratization of the country.  She said that Nelson Mandela had always admired ASEAN for uniting the region and providing a platform for development for its countries and peoples, and that he had always wanted to emulate the ASEAN blueprint in developing South Africa and its region in Africa.

Philippine Ambassador to South Africa Joseph Gerard B. Angeles, speaking as the senior ASEAN diplomat in South Africa, stated that the accession of South Africa would benefit both the country and ASEAN; particularly in the potential for future trade, investment, and other cooperation agreements.  Ambassador Angeles pointed that the accession opens an opportunity for South Africa to access the 650-million strong ASEAN market, and for ASEAN, through South Africa, to access the newly-operational African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). END

Philippine Ambassador to South Africa Joseph Gerard B. Angeles expounds on the benefits of ASEAN TAC to South Africa and the countries of ASEAN.

Minister Pandor, ASEAN diplomats, and DIRCO officials celebrate South Africa’s accession to the ASEAN TAC.

For more information, visit https://www.pretoriape.dfa.gov.ph.