00:00Your Majesty, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, friends from across our ASEAN community, good morning.
00:10It is my great pleasure to welcome you all to the 48th ASEAN Summit and Related Meetings here in the
00:16Philippines, Queen City of the South, Cebu.
00:21At the outset, allow me to convey my sincere appreciation for your presence at this important gathering.
00:27I recognize that each delegation has traveled here despite demanding schedules and pressing responsibilities at home.
00:35That you have chosen to be here reflects not only the urgency and significance of the occasion,
00:41but also our shared commitment to the enduring values that continue to bind our region together, dialogue, cooperation, and mutual
00:52respect.
00:53Ladies and gentlemen, it is especially meaningful that we gather in this historic place.
01:00As a pre-colonial trading hub, the historic province of Cebu has served as a gateway to our beautiful country.
01:07Long before our modern borders existed, Cebu already stood as a crossroads of trade, ideas, and peoples.
01:16Half a century ago, Cebu witnessed the birth of Philippine international connectivity,
01:23the introduction of a lasting spiritual and cultural heritage, and the beginnings of a major regional hub.
01:31Twenty years ago, within these very grounds, leaders of our region signed the Cebu Declaration on the Blueprint of the
01:39ASEAN Charter,
01:40which marked significant progress in transforming ASEAN's cooperation framework into a stronger, more coherent institutional architecture,
01:50laying the essential groundwork for the eventual signing of the ASEAN Charter in 2007.
01:57It is therefore a fitting place for our summit, providing us with a valuable opportunity to advance regional cooperation,
02:05economic resilience, and sustainability under the Philippine chairship anchored on the theme navigating our future together.
02:15Ladies and gentlemen, we once more find ourselves here in Cebu at a defining moment in our shared journey.
02:23As we gather then for an important milestone, so do we stand together today to demonstrate ASEAN's capacity to respond
02:34with unity,
02:35with wisdom, with resolve, at a time when our region is once again faced with profound uncertainty.
02:43For we meet at a time of considerable challenge.
02:46Across our region and beyond, nations continue to navigate an increasingly complex global environment.
02:54The increasingly volatile situation in the Middle East has impacted our region,
02:59challenging us to remain agile in the face of the uncertainties which threaten lifestyles, livelihoods, and lives.
03:08Many of our countrymen continue to look to us, their leaders,
03:13not only for stability, but for reassurance, and for hope.
03:18Over the past months, each of our countries has had to make adjustments to modify our approaches.
03:25So we come together now to study those adjustments, to find the best approaches, to face the future together.
03:35For the Philippines, we made a difficult decision to recalibrate our ASEAN chairship hosting
03:42in response to the Middle East conflict, through the scaling down of non-essential activities
03:48and shifting of applicable meetings from physical to virtual platforms.
03:54Despite the said calibration, we strive to remain responsive to the needs of our ASEAN community
04:00and focus on fulfilling our chairship goals.
04:04The work of ASEAN must continue, not despite the challenges, but because the times demand our answers to those challenges
04:13for our peoples, for our countries, for ASEAN.
04:18My appreciation extends to ASEAN and our partners in ASEAN.
04:23Because despite facing deep challenges of your own, you have come to support us and to work with us to
04:29respond to this crisis.
04:31We have strengthened our coordination where possible.
04:34Our foreign, economic, agriculture, and energy ministers have met to lay out plans with their sectors.
04:41Joint meetings between the political security and economic pillars were held to align our responses.
04:48We have all done what we can, individually and collectively, to ensure that even amidst uncertainty, the work of building
04:57our ASEAN community continues.
05:01Ladies and gentlemen, our theme of navigating our future together has always held true for ASEAN.
05:08But now, more than ever, it is a principle that we must continue to share, an idea we must continue
05:16to embrace.
05:18If there is one lesson ASEAN has learned over the decades, it is that difficult times do not divide us.
05:25Four ASEAN challenges present us with opportunities that have further strengthened our resolve to work more closely,
05:33to listen more carefully, and to act more purposefully.
05:36This summit gathering is evidence of that commitment.
05:40It reflects our shared understanding that especially in moments of difficulty, engagement remains essential.
05:49That when circumstances are challenging, partnership is, more than ever, indispensable.
05:55And that even when the future appears uncertain, hope remains the responsibility of leadership.
06:03It is in that spirit that I warmly welcome all of you, reminded of the significance of our gathering.
06:09For ASEAN has always drawn its strength, not from uniformity, but from unity.
06:16So as we begin our work today, let our discussions be guided by wisdom, openness, and our enduring commitment to
06:24one another.
06:25Aligned with the Philippines' three peace, peace and security anchors, prosperity corridors, and people empowerment,
06:33our discussions today will chart our course as we navigate our future together.
06:39Once again, I thank you for your presence and welcome you to the 48th ASEAN Summit.
06:45Mabuhay at maraming salamat.
06:49Thank you, Mr. President.
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