The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Bendito dos Santos Freitas, paid an official visit to Vietnam and Myanmar as part of his diplomatic mission to the Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), an initiative that is part of Timor-Leste’s preparations for full membership of the organization, scheduled for the 47th ASEAN Summit, to be held on September 26th in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. ASEAN Summit, to be held on September 26th in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 
In Vietnam, Minister Bendito dos Santos Freitas met with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung on September 16th. During the meetings, he conveyed Timor-Leste’s deep gratitude for Vietnam’s strong support for the accession process, recalling that Vietnam has stood by Timor-Leste since the formal submission of its membership application in 2011. Priority areas for bilateral cooperation in the post-accession period were also identified, including agriculture and food security, tourism and cultural promotion, education and professional training, as well as security and defense, with an emphasis on combating cybercrime and maritime monitoring. The Minister also stressed the importance of strengthening bilateral coordination in order to ensure structured cooperation in the economic, political, social, and cultural fields.
In Myanmar, Minister Bendito dos Santos Freitas met with his counterpart, U Than Swe, on September 18th. The meeting provided an opportunity to exchange views on deepening bilateral cooperation and to reiterate the shared commitment to promoting peace, stability, and regional development, in line with the principles of the ASEAN Charter. During the meeting, Timor-Leste officially proposed the opening of an embassy in Dili and expressed its intention to conclude bilateral agreements on visa exemptions for holders of diplomatic and service passports, as well as to move forward with visa facilitation mechanisms for tourism purposes.
Minister Bendito dos Santos Freitas’ visit to Vietnam and Myanmar is part of his tour visit to the ten ASEAN Member States, at the request of the organization’s Presidency. This initiative aims to reaffirm Timor-Leste’s readiness to take its place as the 11th Member State of ASEAN and, at the same time, to thank the Member States for their political and technical support throughout the accession preparation process.
