Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is hosting leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations at a summit that opens Wednesday, seeking to bolster business and other ties with members of the regional bloc.
The two-day Russia-ASEAN summit, which is held in Kazan, is set to consider ways to expand Russia’s “strategic partnership” with ASEAN that includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, East Timor and Vietnam.
The regional bloc has maintained relations with Moscow as a “dialogue partner” and engaged Russian officials in annual top-level meetings. The summit in Kazan marks the 35th anniversary of Russia-ASEAN relations.
In a message greeting participants in a business forum held on the sidelines of the summit, Putin said he was confident that it will “create new opportunities for expanding mutually beneficial trade, investment, and industrial cooperation, while also strengthening direct dialogue between our business communities.”
Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said the summit’s agenda includes exchanging views on global and regional issues and reviewing efforts to develop Russia-ASEAN ties. He emphasized that the participants are set to underline their adherence to “forming a just and democratic multipolar world order based on the principles of international law and the United Nations Charter.”
Ushakov told reporters that Putin was set to have bilateral meetings with ASEAN leaders during the summit.
Some of ASEAN’s diverse member countries are seen to be aligned with the United States, including the Philippines, which currently holds the association’s yearly rotating presidency. Other members have heavy trade and security engagements with China and Russia.
Several ASEAN members, including the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, have either imported Russian crude oil or expressed interest in purchasing it after global fuel prices soared in the wake of the war in Iran.
