Russia supports ASEAN’s centrality in regional affairs: Lavrov

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Wednesday that Moscow supports the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' (ASEAN) centrality in regional affairs.

Lavrov made the remarks during the ASEAN-Russia Post-Ministerial Conference in the Philippine capital Manila, where he met with ASEAN Chair and Philippine Foreign Secretary Theresa P. Lazaro and ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn.

"Russia strongly believes that ASEAN is our reliable and like-minded partner," he told the meeting, adding that Moscow consistently supports ASEAN's centrality in regional affairs and contributes its "fair share" to strengthening an Asian-led system of interstate relations based on international law, openness and equality.

He said the common understanding of international processes reaffirmed in the Russian city of Kazan, which hosted the Russia-ASEAN summit in June, along with the commitment of leaders to establishing a more "just and resilient" multipolar world order, strengthening a "balanced architecture" of security in the Asia-Pacific and increasing comprehensive cooperation in Greater Eurasia would provide strong support for "our common efforts."