By Prashanth Parameswaran
A look at some of the meeting’s key outcomes.
On November 22, Malaysia hosted the 10th East Asia Summit (EAS) as part of the recent round of Asian summitry held in Kuala Lumpur.
The EAS, which comprises the ten members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) along with Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia, and the United States, is considered the premier forum for leaders to discuss strategic issues.
This year’s EAS was especially significant, since it marks a decade since the first iteration of the meeting was held in Malaysia back in 2005. It was also held amid other important events in ASEAN and related meetings, including the establishment of an ASEAN Community and the signing of the U.S.-ASEAN strategic partnership (See: “ASEAN Creates New Community Under Malaysia’s Chairmanship“).
Ahead of this year’s EAS, several countries, including the United States, have been pushing for the strengthening of the EAS as a forum to not only tackle major regional issues, but also ongoing global crises and matters of concern (See: “Malaysia as ASEAN Chair in 2015: What To Expect”). In that vein, the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the Tenth Anniversary of the EAS was adopted, with the chairman’s statement noting the substantive discussions that have occurred on the strengthening of the EAS in 2014 and 2015.
“In this, we are convinced that a stronger EAS will further contribute to peace and security in the region,” Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said when chairing the meeting, according to national news agency Bernama.
Read the full story at The Diplomat