The event was co-chaired by the Permanent Representative of Brunei to ASEAN Hairani Tajuddin and the UN Assistant Secretary-General of Department for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations Khaled Khiari. It was attended by all Permanent Representatives to ASEAN, several UN senior officials from various agencies, including the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the Economic and Social Commission for Asia-Pacific (ESCAP), and the UN Development Programme (UNDP).
This was the annual meeting at the ambassadorial level between ASEAN and the UN to review the progress of projects and cooperation activities within the framework of the ASEAN - UN Action Plan for the 2016-2020 and the 2021-2025 periods.
Participants discussed how to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic in the region and over the globe, stressing the importance of an equal access to vaccines.
The UN showed its support for ASEAN's initiatives and wished to further assist the bloc in implementing the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework, humanitarian relief work during the crisis in Myanmar, as well as priority areas such as. It welcomed ASEAN's commitment of settling disputes in the East Sea/South China Sea through peaceful measures, in compliance with international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
In his address, Ambassador Bang reiterated the proposal of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh at the high-level open debate of the UN Security Council on maritime security on August 9 on the establishment of a network of mechanisms and initiatives on maritime security in the region, coordinated by the UN, to enhance information and experience sharing, and promptly respond to common challenges.
