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Dacic signs Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia

Belgrade/Jakarta, 4 September 2023

First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dacic signed today in Jakarta, where the 43rd Summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is being held, the instrument of accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia.

At a formal ceremony in the capital of Indonesia, Dacic said that it is a great honour for him that today, on behalf of the Serbian government, he is signing the instrument of accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, adding that this is an event of great importance for Serbia for the future improvement of cooperation with friendly countries.

He recalled that Serbia is the heir of the former Yugoslavia and that it is proud of its decades-long friendship with the countries of Southeast Asia, which dates back to the fifties and sixties of the last century, when the Non-Aligned Movement was founded.

We cherish extremely friendly feelings towards Indonesia and other countries that are members of ASEAN, said the Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Dacic pointed out that the principles that Serbia has adhered to all these years are also the principles of ASEAN, namely mutual respect for independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity and national identity of all peoples, non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, overcoming all differences through peaceful means.

That is why I will be happy to sign the instrument today and thank you very much for your trust, said Dacic.

The ASEAN member states unanimously approved Serbia's request to accede the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia in July of this year.

The members of this organisation are Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Brunei Darussalam and Myanmar.

Access to that treaty opens opportunities for Serbia for closer dialogue, cooperation and inclusion in various ASEAN networks and platforms, but also contributes to the promotion of essential cooperation in the economic and socio-cultural areas of Serbia with that bloc.

The most important areas of cooperation of ASEAN with the countries that signed the treaty are, among others, economic cooperation, education and the development of people-to-people contacts, science, technology and innovation, and sustainable development, while ASEAN develops cooperation with certain countries in other specific areas as well.

Serbia submitted a formal request for accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia in 2013.

Among the signatories to the treaty are: the People's Republic of China, India, Japan, Pakistan, the Russian Federation, France, the United States of America, Canada, Turkey, the European Union and Great Britain.

At today's ceremony, the instrument of accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation was also signed by Panama and Kuwait.