President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Wednesday expressed support for Australia’s possible inclusion in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as a member-state.

Marcos said he was open to Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ebrahim’s idea of allowing Australia to join ASEAN.

“Well, I cannot see why that would not be a good idea. Australia has already been a very active part of ASEAN,” Marcos said in a media interview in Melbourne, Australia.

“And for all intents and purposes, really, in all but name, they are already members of ASEAN. Yes, I think they would be very welcome to join ASEAN,” he added.

The statement came, after Canberra’s successful hosting of the ASEAN-Special Summit to commemorate their 50th anniversary of dialogue relations.

Australia became ASEAN’s first dialogue partner in 1974.

Australia considers ASEAN as its key trading partner, expecting its two-way trade with the regional bloc to reach USD400 billion by 2040, an increase from the USD178 billion posted in 2022.

The current ASEAN member-states are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Timor-Leste was admitted “in principle” in 2022 as the regional bloc’s 11th member but its full membership remains pending. It applied to become an official ASEAN member-state in 2011.

ASEAN was established on Aug. 8, 1967 in Bangkok, Thailand, with the signing of the ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration). (PNA)