Foreign ministers from China and ASEAN issued a joint statement on Friday in Manila calling for deeper energy cooperation. The move comes as Southeast Asia faces disruptions from Middle East tensions, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
The statement followed a meeting between the ministers against the backdrop of an ongoing energy crisis. Southeast Asia relies heavily on oil imports, with 55 per cent of its crude oil coming from the Middle East, according to the World Economic Forum Asia. This leaves up to 28 per cent of the region’s final energy consumption exposed to disruption.
ASEAN Secretary General Kao Kim Hourn had warned last month that the Middle East crisis had “laid bare the vulnerability of global energy and food supply chains to geopolitical shocks.” The group called for deeper cooperation with China.
The joint statement welcomed ongoing US-Iran negotiations mediated by Pakistan and Qatar. It urged a ceasefire and a peaceful resolution to the conflict, building on a prior statement from the 11-member bloc.
