Timor-Leste's AMM Participation Marks Key Step Toward ASEAN Membership
By Nurunnasihah Ahmad Rashid and Zufazlin Baharuddin
KUALA LUMPUR, June 6 (Bernama) -- Timor-Leste's participation as an observer at the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AMM) and related meetings in Kuala Lumpur starting Tuesday marks a significant step towards its full integration into the regional bloc, with membership expected to be formalised at the ASEAN Summit in October.
Security and political analyst from the Centre for Media and Information Warfare Studies at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Shah Alam, Selangor Dr Noor Nirwandy Mat Noordin, Timor-Leste's active engagement as an observer has laid a strong foundation for its eventual accession as a full ASEAN member.
'The relationship with ASEAN leaders and Timor-Leste is a very progressive transition. All the countries in ASEAN have basically agreed to the adoption of the accession of Timor-Leste since the beginning of the development of observer status in 2022,' he told Bernama.
In May, ASEAN leaders have agreed to accept Timor-Leste as the 11th member of the regional bloc at the upcoming ASEAN Summit in October, subject to the fulfilment of several remaining requirements for full membership.
This underscores the bloc's unified political will to welcome the country as its 11th member and support its institutional readiness.
Timor-Leste, which gained independence in 2002, was granted observer status in ASEAN in 2022 and has since been working towards full membership based on a structured Roadmap endorsed by the regional bloc.
At the ASEAN summit in May, ASEAN Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn highlighted Timor-Leste's growing engagement noting that the country attended about 90 per cent of ASEAN meetings in the first quarter 2025 compared to 83 per cent last year.
Noor Nirwandy pointed out that ASEAN members need to continue focusing on providing technical and institutional support to ensure a smooth transition to full membership for the country.
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