Putin Gathers ASEAN Leaders in Kazan as Prabowo Is Absent

Russian President Vladimir Putin gathered leaders of ASEAN countries for a Russia-ASEAN summit in Kazan on Wednesday, held in the absence of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, who had previously been scheduled to attend the agenda in Russia. In his welcoming remarks at a business forum held on the sidelines of the summit, Putin affirmed Moscow’s commitment to strengthening economic ties with Southeast Asian nations. He expressed optimism that the forum would open new opportunities for increased trade, investment, and industrial cooperation between Russia and ASEAN. “I am confident this meeting will create new opportunities to expand mutually beneficial trade, investment, and industrial cooperation, while strengthening direct dialogue between our business communities,” Putin said. Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov stated that the two-day meeting discussed strengthening Russia’s strategic partnership with ASEAN countries, which include Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam. The summit also marked 35 years of Russia-ASEAN relations. According to Ushakov, participants also exchanged views on global and regional issues and affirmed their commitment to promoting a fairer multipolar world order based on international law and the United Nations Charter. On the sidelines of the summit, Putin held a number of bilateral meetings with ASEAN leaders, including Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. Marcos even invited Putin to attend the ASEAN Summit in Manila next November. During an official reception for the delegates, Putin stressed that Russia and ASEAN countries share common views in supporting the principles of state sovereignty and non-intervention. He assessed that each country has its own development model without needing to impose views on others. The meeting in Kazan also became an important momentum for Russia to expand its economic influence in Southeast Asia. A number of ASEAN countries, including Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, are known to have imported or expressed interest in buying Russian crude oil following the surge in global energy prices due to the conflict in the Middle East. In addition to discussing cooperation with ASEAN, Putin also met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to discuss bilateral relations, which the Kremlin said continue to develop amid global geopolitical dynamics.