[Global Times-Global Network Reporter Guo Yuandan] On the 26th, the 47th ASEAN Summit opened in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and East Timor officially became the 11th member of ASEAN under the joint witness of ASEAN leaders. This is the second time that ASEAN has welcomed new members since 1999. Experts interviewed by the Global Times said that East Timor's accession to ASEAN will help ASEAN expand its international influence. After East Timor becomes a member of ASEAN, there will be a broader space for cooperation between China and East Timor.

At the opening ceremony of the ASEAN Summit on the 26th, the Declaration of East Timor's Accession to ASEAN was officially signed, and the President and Prime Minister of East Timor attended the ceremony together. Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohammed, the rotating presidency of ASEAN, said on the 25th that this is an important milestone in the development process of ASEAN, symbolizing a new stage of regional integration.

According to public information, East Timor is located at the easternmost tip of Nusa Tenggara Islands in Southeast Asia, and applied to join ASEAN in 2011. In November 2022, ASEAN countries agreed in principle to admit East Timor as a member state. ASEAN was established in 1967. Previously, its member countries included Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar.

Guangzhou National University ASEAN Academy Deputy Dean Guang Ying said in an interview with the Global Times on the 26th that it has been 14 years since 2011 that East Timor applied for ASEAN, so far. In the past 14 years, ASEAN has been doing relevant assessments considering that ASEAN has its own system and norms and vitality consideration, so the key to the adoption of East Timor is whether East Timor reached the threshold of accession. Previously, ASEAN evaluated East Timor through political security, economic development, social and cultural three aspects, examining whether it can meet the requirements and entry standards of community building.

Ge Hongliang introduced that ASEAN's acceptance of East Timor as its 11th member state is a continuous expansion of Southeast Asia and ASEAN organizations. Against the backdrop of competition among major powers and changes facing the world, ASEAN needs to strengthen itself and enhance regional influence. In addition, it was not ASEAN's wish for East Timor to stray outside Southeast Asia before. East Timor has become a member of ASEAN. This change will help Southeast Asia maintain stability amid competition from major powers. "The accession of East Timor can also expand ASEAN's international influence. For example, East Timor can serve as a bridge for ASEAN to establish dialogue relations with the Organization of Portuguese-speaking Countries."

¡°East Timor joined ASEAN, and there is some help to expand ASEAN¡¯s international influence.¡± Professor of Northeast Asia College at Shandong University told Global Times on Thursday, ¡°East Timor¡¯s joining strengthens ASEAN¡¯s central and leading role in regional governance.

The oil and gas resources of East Timor are rich, the industrialization of emerging countries in Southeast Asia is rapid, so the demand for resources in East Timor is growing rapidly, and after East Timor joins the alliance, it is conducive to ASEAN's energy security, and it is also conducive to ASEAN's de-dollarization and integrated cooperation. "

Ge Hongliang told the Global Times that East Timor is the youngest country in Southeast Asia. It is small in scale and weak in development capabilities. It can achieve better development by integrating into strong regional organizations. Secondly, after its independence, East Timor has always had the willingness to participate in regional and international cooperation. It is surrounded by two major powers, Australia and Indonesia. The further development of East Timor, which is caught between major powers, requires strong external support. Before becoming a member of ASEAN, Singapore and other Southeast Asian countries had practical support for East Timor. After East Timor becomes a member, ASEAN member states will further increase their support for it.

East Timor has always been the focus of Indonesian and Australian competition, which has had a negative impact on the stability of Southeast Asia and the process of economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region.In the past, Australian political geography has been dividing the country into the Pacific islands, rather than Southeast Asia, reflecting the different intentions of foreign powers for the stability and integration development of Southeast Asia.

According to the information released by official website, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in August this year, China and ASEAN started the dialogue process in 1991. After more than 30 years of joint efforts, political mutual trust between the two sides has been significantly enhanced, and pragmatic cooperation in various fields has yielded fruitful results. Both sides believe that China-ASEAN relations have become the most connotative and dynamic group of relations between ASEAN and dialogue partners, with broad prospects for development. Economically, in 2024, the total trade value between China and ASEAN will be 6.99 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 9.0%, accounting for 15.9% of China's total foreign trade value. The two sides have been each other's largest trading partners for five consecutive years.

In this regard, Ge Hongliang said that compared with the previous bilateral cooperation between China and East Timor, after East Timor becomes a member of ASEAN, there will be a broader space for cooperation between China and East Timor. "After becoming a member of ASEAN, East Timor will abide by various systems of ASEAN, and at the same time, it can get all kinds of benefits brought by the ASEAN framework."