Indonesia Replaces Brunei as Chair of ASEAN 2011

The ten member states of ASEAN unanimously agreed to Indonesia’s request for a swap of ASEAN Chairmanship with Brunei Darussalam for the year 2011..

 

According to the ASEAN Charter, the Chairmanship of ASEAN shall rotate annually, based on the alphabetical order of the English names of Member States. In principle, 2011 would have seen Brunei succeeding the Chairmanship from Vietnam, and Indonesia would have taken over from Cambodia in 2013.

 

A Member State assuming the Chairmanship shall chair the ASEAN Summit and related summits, the ASEAN Coordinating Council, the three ASEAN Community Councils, relevant ASEAN Sectoral Ministerial Bodies and senior officials, and the Committee of Permanent Representatives. In 2013, should Indonesia assume the Chairmanship of ASEAN, it will in addition host APEC meetings. In view of this packed schedule, the country has asked for the swap.

 

Brunei and the Member States agreed to Indonesia’s request. The decision was reached during the recently-concluded 16th ASEAN Summit in Hanoi.

 

The exchange will not affect Cambodia’s assumption of ASEAN Chairmanship either. Cambodia will assume the Chairmanship in 2012.