Southeast Asian foreign ministers hold a closed-doors retreat in Malaysia on Sunday, as the country hosts its first meeting as chair of the regional bloc ASEAN amid an intensifying civil war in Myanmar and confrontations in the South China Sea.

LANGKAWI - Asean needs to double down on regional integration to enhance the grouping’s competitiveness, especially at a time when changes to geopolitical structures and economic policy are taking place worldwide, said Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan.

Two tourism players see the Perak and Kedah governments working to woo their respective target groups of visitors, but a third believes Langkawi is already losing out.

Malaysia, this year's ASEAN chair, said Sunday ahead of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House t

Malaysia has appointed a new ASEAN special envoy to Myanmar to try and implement the regional bloc’s stalled peace plan for the war-torn country.

Preparations are now underway for the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting in the Malaysian island of Langkawi. Malaysia will host ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting from 18 until 19 January 2025. Camera: FAZRY ISMAIL.

Retreat under Malaysia’s chairmanship concluded here today with an advice to Myanmar, a progress evaluation of the

Southeast Asian foreign ministers are gathering for their first meeting this year under the regional bloc’s new chair, Malaysia, seeking a breakthrough over Myanmar’s drawn-out civil war and territorial disputes in the South China Sea.

LANGKAWI, Malaysia -- Malaysia has called on its fellow ASEAN members to demonstrate inclusivity, "trust and support" within the bloc and to prioritize its interests amid intensifying superpower competition.

Southeast Asian foreign ministers told Myanmar’s junta to prioritise a ceasefire in its civil war over fresh elections during a meeting in Malaysia

The regional bloc told a junta representative at a meeting that a poll is “not a priority at the moment," Malaysia’s foreign minister said.

Singapore’s foreign affairs minister was speaking after the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat in Langkawi on Jan 18 and 19, the first high-level meeting hosted by Malaysia as the bloc’s 2025 chair.