Wan Nor" led a team of Thai MPs and Senators to officially attend the 45th ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly in Lao PDR, along with exchanging ideas on drug problems, transnational crimes, and unrest in Myanmar. Mr. Van Muhammad Noor Matha, President of the National Assembly and Speaker of the House of Representatives, led the Thai parliamentary delegation to attend the opening ceremony of the 45th ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly in Vientiane, Lao PDR, with various cultural performances, singing of the Lao national anthem and the Ai Pa song. Mr. Saysomphone Phomvihane, President of the National Assembly of the Lao PDR and President of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA), gave an opening speech stating that he was pleased that the Lao PDR hosted the meeting and thanked Mr. Thongloun Sisoulith, President of the State, for opening the meeting today. The meeting also included an exchange of views between AIPA and ASEAN (legislative and executive branches). At present, the ASEAN region is facing re gional conflicts, natural disasters, climate change, and financial crises, as well as unexpected things that need to be faced. However, we will maintain the principles of peace, sustainability, and sharing common goals for our people, aiming to restore the economy to make ASEAN stable and free from conflict, in accordance with the ASEAN 3-Pillar Master Plan. Mr. Thongloun Sisoulith, President of the Lao PDR, said that this meeting will be a good opportunity for everyone to express their opinions, visions and exchange their views frankly, creating cooperation in determining the future direction. Under the ASEAN Charter or the basic principles that are held together, we can use diversity to achieve the ASEAN goal of being a peaceful region to deal with the outside world. In addition, ASEAN is preparing to welcome Timor-Leste as a member in the future, which will make ASEAN even stronger. The 45th ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) has been in session since October 17, with nine ASEAN member states part icipating, except Indonesia, which recently held an election. In addition, 21 countries and one organization also joined the meeting as observers. Yesterday (18 October), Mr. Wan Muhammad Noor expressed his support for the establishment of a study committee on the transformation of the AIPACODD meeting into the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly Advisory Council on Transnational Crime (AIPA-ACT) meeting, as he believed that this change would enable AIPA to better deal with complex and interconnected transnational crimes, but the drug problem, which is a major regional problem with serious social and economic impacts, must not be neglected. As for the unrest in Myanmar, where Thailand has to shoulder the burden of refugees, ASEAN must discuss together to find a direct solution to the problem. This issue will be discussed, even though there is a rule of non-interference in internal affairs. Source: Thai News Agency
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