Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia has asked the United States to enhance cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the Indo-Pacific."We believe that the US will always support ASEAN's centrality and its position as the epicentrum of growth," Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said at the ASEAN Foreign Post Ministerial Conference with the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, here on Friday. ccording to Marsudi, ASEAN has this year started to mainstream the implementation of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP). The bloc has expressed the hope that all ASEAN partners, including the US, will uphold strategic approaches in the form of inclusive collaboration and dialogue. "And I believe that our meeting today will result in new commitments for concrete and further cooperation between ASEAN and the US, and at the same time, contributes peace and stability in the region," saidMarsudi, who is serving as a coordinator for ASEAN-US cooperation. She reaffirmed that the spirit of collaboration is the only way for ASEAN to build an inclusive regional architecture. The bloc has also welcomed all nations to join the interaction in the Indo-Pacific.
Source: Antara News Agency