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Credit : Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's X
MANILA, November 15, 2026 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his wife, Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, attended the opening ceremony of the 49th ASEAN Summit at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Manila on Sunday, Anwar said in a post on X. The ceremony was presided over by the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., in his capacity as ASEAN chair.
“As one of the founding countries of ASEAN, Malaysia remains committed to playing an active role in determining the direction of this region, strengthening consensus, and preserving regional peace and stability,” Anwar wrote. He said Malaysia would “continue to stand firm as a committed regional partner in building an ASEAN that is united and resilient, and in ensuring that the voice and interests of the region continue to be respected on the international stage.”
The New Straits Times reported that Anwar and Wan Azizah were received by Marcos as they arrived for the ceremony. The Star published a photograph of the couple with Marcos and First Lady Louise Araneta-Marcos at the PICC. According to the New Straits Times, leaders of member states, including Anwar, were taken to the main hall in locally made electric tricycles, known as e-trikes, and the opening included an address by Marcos, followed by the presentation of the ASEAN Awards.
The New Straits Times quoted Marcos as saying that no member state possessed all the resources and capabilities needed to meet the challenges facing the region. Geopolitical tensions, economic uncertainty, the emergence of new technologies, climate change and transnational threats were “reshaping our region faster than any single country can respond on its own,” he said, according to the newspaper.
Anwar was accompanied by Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan and Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani, the New Straits Times reported. The newspaper said the opening was followed by the summit’s plenary and retreat sessions, and that Anwar also joined other ASEAN leaders in separate meetings with representatives of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA), the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC) and ASEAN youth. Bernama earlier said he was scheduled to receive a courtesy call from Asian Development Bank president Masato Kanda in the evening.
The three-day gathering, themed “Navigating Our Future, Together”, runs until Tuesday, November 17, and is due to end with the handover of the ASEAN chairmanship from the Philippines to Singapore, Bernama reported. Anwar arrived in Manila on Saturday evening to lead Malaysia’s delegation, as previously reported by Life News Agency.
Malaysia’s Foreign Ministry, cited by Bernama, said the summit would give Malaysia an opportunity to exchange views on ASEAN Community building and the bloc’s future direction, with talks focusing on regional resilience, energy security and supply chains. Leaders are expected to review the implementation of ASEAN’s Five-Point Consensus on Myanmar, and maritime security discussions are expected to cover a proposed ASEAN Maritime Centre and progress in negotiations on a South China Sea Code of Conduct. Transboundary haze is also on the agenda, the ministry said.
Malaysia is one of ASEAN’s founding members and held the chairmanship in 2025 before handing it to the Philippines. Inquirer.net listed Anwar among the leaders present at Sunday’s opening. As of Sunday afternoon, Anwar had also posted about separate meetings with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and with the Sultan of Brunei on the sidelines of the summit.
Sources: Anwar Ibrahim on X (opening ceremony post); New Straits Times; The Star; Bernama; Inquirer.net.
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