PH Co-moderates Conference on the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation; Reaffirms Commitment to Peace

Ambassador Hjayceelyn M. Quintana, Permanent Representative of the Philippines to ASEAN delivers her remarks. 

JAKARTA 12 July 2024 – Ambassador Hjayceelyn M. Quintana, Permanent Representative of the Philippines to ASEAN, highlighted the importance of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC) as the treaty which governs the inter-state relations among the High Contracting Parties (HCPs), and enshrines perpetual peace and everlasting amity among them.

Ambassador Quintana made the remarks at the Conference of the HCPs to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, which was convened for the very first time on 26 June 2024 at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat under the theme “Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia: Reflections and Future Direction.”  The TAC was adopted on 24 February 1976.

She recalled the vision of the Founding Fathers of ASEAN, who expressed in the 1976 Joint Communiqué of the First ASEAN Heads of Government Meeting in Bali, Indonesia their readiness to develop fruitful relations and mutually beneficial cooperation with other countries in the region, and hoped that other powers would pursue policies which would contribute to the achievement of peace, stability and progress in Southeast Asia. Forty-eight years later, the TAC contributed to that aspiration to achieve a peaceful and progressive Southeast Asia.

She reaffirmed the Philippines’ commitment to the fundamental principles guiding the relations of HCPs to the Treaty, namely mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity and national identity of all nations; the right of every State to lead its national existence free from external interference, subversion or coercion; non-interference in the internal affairs of one another; settlement of differences or disputes by peaceful means; renunciation of the threat or use of force; and effective cooperation among themselves.

As of July 2024, there are a total of 54 High Contracting Parties to the TAC. Forty-eight (48) Ambassadors/ representatives were in attendance during the Conference. 

The 50th anniversary of the signing of the TAC will be celebrated in 2026, which will also be the year the Philippines will assume the Chairship of ASEAN.  It would be an opportunity for the Philippines to highlight the role of the TAC in achieving peace and cooperation in Southeast Asia and showcase its relevance in the region and beyond.

Permanent Representative Quintana co-moderated the Conference on behalf of PH as presumptive Chair in 2026, along with Ambassador Bovonethat Douangchak, Permanent Representative of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic to ASEAN as the current ASEAN Chair and Ambassador Sarah Al Bakri Devadason, Permanent Representative of Malaysia to ASEAN as the incoming ASEAN Chair in 2025.

Twenty-eight (28) HCPs delivered interventions at the Conference, which served as a platform for the HCPs to reaffirm their commitment to the principles of the TAC, discuss its implementation, as well as explore future potential cooperation under its framework. END

Group photo of High Contracting Parties to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia. (Photo credit: ASEAN Secretariat)

(L-R) Permanent Representative Quintana co-moderates the Conference as the ASEAN Chair in 2026, with Permanent Representative Bovonethat Douangchak of the Lao PDR to ASEAN as the current ASEAN Chair, Permanent Representative Sarah Al Bakri Devadason of Malaysia to ASEAN as the Incoming ASEAN Chair in 2025, and Director, Bala Kumar Palaniappan of the External Relations Directorate of the ASEAN Secretariat. (Photo credit: ASEAN Secretariat)