Antara News Kupang are reporting that Sidharto R. Suryodipuro, the Directorate General for ASEAN Cooperation has suggested that Labuan Bajo is likely to be the location for this year’s ASEAN Summit in Indonesia which is scheduled for May.
“The government has not officially decided, but it is true that Labuan Bajo is one of the places that has a big chance of being the venue for the summit,” said Sidharto in a press briefing session in Jakarta, Thursday (19/1/2023).
Labuan Bajo was one of the options for hosting the Summit because it could attract world attention to other regions in Indonesia, say Antara News Kupang.
“This reflects the government’s priority and concern for various other regions in Indonesia. So there is an interest in taking advantage of this ASEAN Summit opportunity to attract the world’s attention to other regions and Labuan Bajo is one of them,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jakarta is confirmed to be the location for the meeting of the foreign ministers of member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on February 3-4. The meeting was the opening agenda in the series of ASEAN Summits in Indonesia, report Antara News Kupang.
Also, for the first time, Timor Leste will send its foreign minister to the ASEAN Coordination Council (ACC) meeting since the country was allowed to become a new member of ASEAN at last year’s summit in Cambodia.
In addition to meetings with the leaders of member countries of the ASEAN association, the Summit will also hold a series of meetings between foreign leaders which are planned to take place in July, followed by the East Asia Summit (EAS) in December.
Source: Antara News Kupang
