Prime Minister Le Minh Hung hosted an official welcome ceremony on June 8 morning for Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet, who is on an official visit to Vietnam and attending the third ASEAN Future Forum in Hanoi from June 8–9.

On September 18, 2025, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, within the framework of the 46th General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA-46), National Assembly (NA) Chairman Tran Thanh Man attended the first plenary session. At the session, the chairman delivered a key speech, strongly affirming the message that the Vietnamese NA will continue to stand with AIPA to make ASEAN’s vision and aspirations a reality.

Since its establishment in 2015, the ASEAN socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) has consistently played a vital role in uniting people and delivering tangible benefits to citizens throughout ASEAN member states. Particularly, amid strategic competition among major powers and increasing pressure on traditional multilateral institutions, ASCC's  significance has grown even more essential in strengthening internal cohesion and defining ASEAN's identity on the international stage.

As Vietnam deepens its regional and global integration, beginning with ASEAN, it has remained a proactive, responsible, and constructive member, committed to building a strong, united, and influential ASEAN that occupies a central role both in the region and on the global stage. Over the past three decades, ASEAN cooperation has played a vital role in Vietnam’s comprehensive development.

To foster deeper ASEAN economic cooperation, member states and the business community need to reinvigorate traditional growth drivers, cultivate high-quality human resources, and strongly advance new growth engines - especially in science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation. Strengthening regional and global supply chain connectivity is also crucial.

ASEAN accompanies Myanmar and Thailand to address earthquake’s aftermath. It is the commitment affirmed by ASEAN Foreign Ministers during the Special Emergency ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, held virtually and chaired by 2025 ASEAN Chair, Malaysia, to respond to the powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Myanmar and Thailand on March 28.

The Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns that sea levels could rise by up to 0.8m by 2100. A 1m rise in sea level would submerge some densely populated lowland areas, putting 28 million people in Indonesia, 23 million in Thailand, and 38 million in Vietnam at risk. Therefore, southeast Asian countries have been implementing various measures to combat coastal erosion.

At the beginning of 2024, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) honored numerous high-quality tourism places. Notably, three cities in Vietnam, Vung Tau (Ba Ria - Vung Tau), Hue (Thua Thien Hue), and Quy Nhon (Binh Dinh), were recognized as ASEAN Clean Tourist Cities. Over the past year, these cities have significantly contributed to promoting and developing the brand of high-quality tourism within the region.

The Mekong-Lancang Cooperation (MLC) has recently made significant progress, fostering a peaceful, stable, and sustainable Mekong region. Among these achievements, the protection of the Mekong River’s water resources stands out as a top priority due to its crucial and decisive role in the region’s agriculture.

After a challenging and turbulent 2023 for the global economy, the dawn of 2024 brings renewed optimism for ASEAN nations. The region is witnessing a significant uptick in trade activities, spurred by a global market recovery and a substantial increase in export orders.

At the ASEAN-Australia special summit to commemorate the 50th anniversary of ASEAN-Australia dialogue relations held in Melbourne, Australia, in March, leaders from ASEAN nations and Australia expressed satisfaction with the development of relations and cooperation achievements. In order to contribute to the promotion of ASEAN –Australia cooperation, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended the conference and proposed “three breakthroughs”, “three enhancements”, and “three togethers”, including striving to double bilateral trade in the next 10 years.

In the context of global trade marked by various shades of gray due to political conflicts and numerous other challenges, the Southeast Asian region continues to be a promising destination for foreign investors.

Demonstrating a commitment to enhancing the quality of tourism services, promoting destination connectivity, and steering sustainable tourism development in the region, the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2024 has put forth numerous initiatives to effectively and substantially boost intra-ASEAN as well as ASEAN partnerships.

The key challenge that ASEAN faces in the coming decades is the need to balance economic growth while reducing carbon emissions.  Action for a green environment is imperative and cannot be delayed, demanding countries in the region to collectively demonstrate shared determination, strong commitment, and resolute action towards achieving a net-zero emissions Asia for sustainable development.

Although the ASEAN-Gulf Cooperation Council (ASEAN-GCC) Summit took place in mid-October in the Riyadh capital (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) in the context of rapid and complex developments regionally and globally, it ended successfully, marking a historic milestone in bilateral relations and making economic cooperation become a main focus and driving force connecting the two regions.

The East Sea is not only a strategic area and a space for development and security of ASEAN’s member states, but also has an important economic position and is the "blood vessel" line of the Asia-Pacific region and the world.

The member countries of the Mekong River Commission, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam recently met in Laos to address the challenges caused by climate change, environmental pollution, population growth, and unsustainable use of water and other resources in the Mekong basin. They agreed to collaborate and renew their efforts to ensure water security and promote sustainable development in the area.