Political leaders of a multitude of Eurasian countries have agreed to strengthen solidarity, intentional cooperation and vaccine multilateralism to solve public health issues and address the economic crisis posed by Covid-19, Prime Minister Hun Sen affirmed on November 25.
The prime minister made the remark at the closing ceremony of the first plenary session of the 13th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM13), hosted by Cambodia on November 25-26.
“We’ve raised the unprecedented challenges presented by Covid-19 which have seriously impacted public health and induced a socio-economic crisis.
“To tackle all of these challenges, we have concurred that solidarity, international cooperation, and vaccine multilateralism are key. Therefore, the protection of health and security of our peoples, and the promotion of solidarity between states are our priorities,” Hun Sen said.
He noted that participants pledged to elevate the role of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) political dialogue forum in pushing for multilateralism and global governance, which he said are necessary to address common issues.
The prime minister underlined that the November 25’s session showed ample support for multilateralism, which he lauded as the foundation for global peace, security and prosperity. A post-Covid economic recovery is also common priority for ASEM countries, he said.
The session advocated for strengthening the world’s rules-based trading system, and committed to building and protecting smooth, uninterrupted supply chains, promoting digitalisation, and the possibility of reopening tourism, in a safe and responsible way, he added.
“Most of us have committed to green and low carbon development to prevent global warming from surpassing 1.5 degrees Celsius, in line with the Paris Agreement on climate. In this regard, technical and financial assistance to developing countries is a priority,” Hun Sen said.
According to the prime minister, ASEM leaders agreed that in the last 25 years, the forum has built a solid base for the Eurasian partnerships needed to move towards a “brighter future” and a more inclusive and resilient world.
