Jakarta. Indonesia recently admitted that ASEAN nations will always stick together despite having had their differences.

Foreign Minister Sugiono used Indonesia’s address to the UN over the weekend to talk about how ASEAN manages its internal rifts, as Jakarta has long promoted dialogue on nearly every world problem. He described the now-11-strong Southeast Asian bloc as something that “brings together nations with different histories, political systems, levels of development, and national interests."

“We do not always agree, but we have made a conscious choice to stay together. We choose to keep talking, even when agreement is difficult,” Sugiono said.

“For almost six decades, ASEAN has managed differences, maintained communication, and continued seeking common ground.”

He went on to say that this “unity and centrality” has also enabled the grouping to engage all partners even amid heightening major power rivalry. 

It was unclear whether Sugiono had a specific ASEAN disagreement in mind when he spoke from the UN podium.

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul made a similar comment when he got on the UN stage earlier that week.

“We [ASEAN] do not always agree, but we have learned to manage differences and preserve space for cooperation,” Anutin said.

ASEAN is now facing some problems in its own backyard, starting from the Myanmar crisis to territorial standoffs.

On Myanmar, the group is sticking to the “five-point consensus," a peace plan that called for dialogue among all parties. The club has barred Myanmar from top-level gatherings since its military toppled the civilian government in February 2021. As years go by, Anutin told the UN that Bangkok would push for ASEAN’s “constructive and calibrated re-engagement” with Myanmar after the long freeze. 

Indonesia and Malaysia have laid overlapping claims at the oil-rich Ambalat sea block. Negotiations are still ongoing.

Anutin admitted that Bangkok and Phnom Penh were going through a “difficult period." 

Their deadly border clashes had led to Thailand scrapping a 2001 framework meant to sort out their maritime dispute. Cambodia subsequently pursued UN conciliation.

Anutin slammed Cambodia’s move to bypass bilateral talks as "regrettable." He, however, promised that his government would “engage in good faith”, but remained worried about the conciliation’s limitations. In his national statement to the UN, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Prak Sokhonn said his country would like to settle the dispute "peacefully."

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