Following the ASEAN summit, pro-democratic Southeast Asian countries increase resistance to Beijing’s expansionist initiatives

The 44th ASEAN Leadership Summit was held in Vientiane, Laos, from October 6 to 11, 2024.

As a result, the Southeast Asian states agreed to hold the first “informal” meeting to speed up the settlement of the war in Myanmar by the end of December in Bangkok, as well as multilateral exercises in the South China Sea to counter China’s expansion.

It was also agreed to admit East Timor to ASEAN in an accelerated format – by 2026.