Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the 10th Anniversary of the 

Establishment of the ASEAN Community

WE, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), namely Brunei Darussalam, the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Republic of Indonesia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, the Republic of the Philippines, the Republic of Singapore, the Kingdom of Thailand, and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, gathered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on the occasion of the 46th ASEAN Summit, on 26 May 2025;

RECALLING the spirit in which the ASEAN Founding Fathers gathered in Bangkok in 1967 and signed the ASEAN Declaration to create an organisation that would help bring about a Southeast Asian region of peace, freedom, and prosperity for our peoples;

RECALLING the historic adoption of the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the Establishment of the ASEAN Community in 2015, which has elevated the integration process in ASEAN by ensuring lasting peace, security and resilience across the region, pushing for a highly integrated and cohesive economy, and fostering a common identity across the peoples of ASEAN; 

FURTHER RECALLING the ASEAN Vision 2020 (Kuala Lumpur, 1997), the Declaration of ASEAN Concord II (Bali, 2003), the Cebu Declaration on the Acceleration of the Establishment of an ASEAN Community by 2015 (Cebu, 2007), the Cha-am Hua Hin Declaration on the Roadmap for an ASEAN Community (2009-2015) (Cha-am, 2009), the Bali Declaration on ASEAN Community in a Global Community of Nations (Bali, 2011), the Phnom Penh Agenda for ASEAN Community Building (Phnom Penh, 2012), and the Nay Pyi Taw Declaration on Realisation of the ASEAN Community by 2015 (Nay Pyi Taw, 2014); and the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on ASEAN 2025: Forging Ahead Together (Kuala Lumpur, 2015); 

REAFFIRMING our commitment to uphold and promote the principles enshrined in the ASEAN Charter and other ASEAN instruments, as well as the United Nations Charter and international law; 

RECOGNISING the significant progress achieved over the past decade in deepening regional integration, strengthening ASEAN unity and Centrality, fostering a stable, prosperous, and people-centred Community, making substantive progress across the Political-Security, Economic, and Socio-Cultural pillars, promoting ASEAN Connectivity and narrowing the development gap;

FURTHER RECOGNISING the significant contribution of ASEAN’s partnerships with external partners based on mutual interests and benefits to ASEAN Communitybuilding efforts while consistently upholding ASEAN Centrality in this collaborative endeavour; 

EMPHASISING the need to build upon the achievements over the past ten years and continuously strengthen the ASEAN Community to address challenges of the rapidly evolving geopolitical and geoeconomic landscape, while ensuring the well-being and prosperity of the peoples of ASEAN; 

COGNISANT of the increasingly multi-dimensional and cross-cutting nature of the issues and challenges confronting ASEAN; and FURTHER COGNISANT of the positive outcomes and lessons learnt in the implementation of the ASEAN 2025: Forging Ahead Together, including its Community Blueprints, the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity and the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Workplans III and IV; 

DO HEREBY: 

     1. PLEDGE to continue working together in the maintenance and promotion of peace, security, and stability, as well as further development and growth in the region, to ensure that the ASEAN Community continues to thrive and remains adaptive and responsive to the impacts and inherent opportunities of existing and future megatrends;  

     2. AGREE to strengthen efforts in upholding ASEAN Centrality, as well as maintaining an ASEAN-centred, open, inclusive, transparent, resilient, and rules-based regional architecture that upholds international law, including through ASEAN-led mechanisms; 

     3. REAFFIRM our commitment to further deepen and broaden cooperation with ASEAN’s external partners, and explore cooperation with other interested parties, including through substantive, practical and tangible cooperation on the four priority areas of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) through ASEAN-led mechanisms; 

     4. STRIVE to ensure ASEAN’s continued progress by reinforcing adherence to ASEAN’s shared principles and commitments, strengthening institutional mechanisms, enhancing cross-pillar and cross-sectoral coordination, and proactively responding to challenges and opportunities; 

     5. REAFFIRM our commitment to deepen economic integration to be a single and future-ready economy that is nimble and resilient, anchored on sustainable growth and good governance, and be a globally competitive and seamlessly integrated single market, by leveraging new and emerging opportunities in the digital, green, and blue economies; 

     6. DECIDE to redouble our efforts to further enhance ASEAN Connectivity, including to advance the ASEAN Power Grid, energy interconnection and multilateral power trade, and narrow development gaps through inclusive, participatory, and equitable access to economic and socio-cultural opportunities; 

     7. AGREE to foster a stronger ASEAN identity and promote greater people-topeople connectivity through education, cultural exchanges, and social cooperation; 

     8. COMMIT to further ensuring the quality of life and well-being of ASEAN peoples and ensuring no one is left behind, by strengthening social protection, enhancing health and nutrition, promoting inclusive and sustainable development, and advancing quality education and skills development for a future-ready ASEAN workforce; and 

     9. AGREE to continue to integrate lessons learned in implementing ASEAN 2025: Forging Ahead Together as ASEAN embarks on the next phase of its journey by realising ASEAN 2045: Our Shared Future and effectively further advance ASEAN Community-building in the next 20 years. 

ADOPTED at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, this Twenty Sixth Day of May in the Year Two Thousand and Twenty-Five, in a single original copy in the English language.

Download the full declaration here.