PUTRAJAYA, Nov 24 — Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob will lead the country’s delegation to the 13th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit 2021 that begins tomorrow.

According to a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry (Wisma Putra) the two-day Virtual Summit from November 25-26 is hosted by Cambodia, the current Chair of ASEM, and preceded by ASEM Senior Officials’ Meeting (ASEM SOM) held on November 22-23, 2021.

This year’s theme, "Strengthening Multilateralism for Shared Growth”, aligns with the current efforts undertaken by ASEM in tackling pressing global challenges through effective dialogue cooperation.

"The Leaders will discuss and review the progress, developments and achievements of the ASEM Process under its three (3) main pillars, namely Political, Economic and Financial, and Socio-Cultural,” the statement said.

The discussion will be centred towards strengthening multilateralism on multiple dimensions, which include global peace, security and stability, financial and trading system, sustainable economic development, general health, women’s empowerment, environment and climate change, and other regional and international issues.

ASEM comprises 21 Asian countries, 28 EU countries, two European countries, the Asean Secretariat and the European Commission. ASEM is an intergovernmental process established on March 1, 1996 to foster dialogue and cooperation between Asia and Europe.

Malaysia joined ASEM in 1996 and has since actively participated in all ASEM initiatives that benefit both regions. — Bernama