Jakarta, Indonesia Sentinel – Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi revealed that the 42nd ASEAN Summit in May 2023 will ratify several agreements. One of them is the development of an electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem.
“In the High Level Task Force on Economic Integration meeting, ASEAN countries agreed to develop an electric vehicle ecosystem in ASEAN and will be ratified at the 42nd Summit, next May,” Retno said at a press conference in Jakarta, Wednesday (5/4/2023).
Indonesia has a number of priorities in carrying out its role as Chair of ASEAN 2023. There are three pillars in the big theme of Indonesia’s chairmanship “ASEAN Matters: Epicenter of Growth.” They are ASEAN Matters, Epicenter of Growth, and the implementation of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP).
On the Epicenter of Growth pillar, Retno said, Indonesia seeks to ensure the strengthening of energy security in supporting the transition from fossil energy to clean and renewable energy, among others by developing a regional electric vehicle ecosystem.
On this occasion, Retno Marsudi also emphasized that the government will also involve various stakeholders in Myanmar as part of the handling efforts to resolve the crisis in the country.
The involvement of these stakeholders is said to be very important in order to encourage the creation of an inclusive national dialogue.
“This engagement with various stakeholders is carried out in accordance with the mandate of the Five-Point Consensus,” Retno said.
Even so, Retno did not mention in detail which parties had been met. She only said that in meetings with stakeholders in Myanmar, Indonesia continued to convey calls for the importance of stopping acts of violence and abuse of force.
For the first time, Indonesia as Chair of ASEAN, Retno said, had also met with a number of special envoys, including a special envoy from the UN Secretary-General and special envoys from Myanmar’s neighboring countries and other countries.
This was done to encourage coordination and synergy while continuing to strengthen ASEAN centrality.
“From our meetings with all special envoys, it appears that support for Indonesia’s chairmanship, ASEAN centrality, and the Five-Point Consensus is very strong,” he said.
Indonesia has also facilitated communication with various parties in Myanmar so that the ASEAN Coordinating Center for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Center) can distribute humanitarian assistance to people who need it, regardless of ethnic background, religion, and political orientation.
“With Indonesia’s facilitation, the AHA Center has succeeded in consulting with several stakeholders that previously could not be done. Thus there is movement regarding the access given to the AHA Center,” Retno said. (InfoPublik.id)
