Him Rotha, Deputy Director, CCRS attended the 3rd ASEAN Future Forum and shared his view on Mekong and ASEAN Vision 2045 in Hanoi from 7 to 10 June at the invitation by Dr Nguyen Hung Son, President of the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam (DAV).
Rotha provided a commentary for the pre-event roundtable on “Mekong in ASEAN’s Sub-Regional Cooperation Architecture Towards Vision 2045.” He argued that the Mekong subregion is crowded by a proliferation of subregional mechanisms, each with its own summit, its own fund, its own agenda. Yet within ASEAN, the Mekong remains under-integrated: proliferation on the outside, a gap on the inside. ASEAN Community Vision 2045 should be about closing that gap, not adding to the crowd.
He said as the Mekong development mechanism is primarily driven by political willingness, the most ideal way is to that the Mekong countries strengthen relations among themselves, but owing to the current evolving circumstances, it would be difficult to advance forward at the moment. The honest, achievable move is to compartmentalize: insulate the functional, technical cooperation — water data, flow monitoring, early warning, fisheries — from the high politics, and keep it running regardless of the political weather.
He then witnessed Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet, Prime Minister of Cambodia’s keynote address at the opening session of the 3rd ASEAN Future Forum alongside with other key leaders, including the Prime Ministers of Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and Timor-Leste as well as the ASEAN Secretary-General. Samdech Prime Minister Hun Manet’s speech addressed Cambodia’s commitment to upholding peace, prosperity, and to promote the livelihood and wellbeing of the people in ASEAN. He also mentioned Cambodia’s position of pursuing peaceful resolution in dealing with the ongoing border conflict with Thailand.
Rotha then actively participated in various plenary sessions, including the fireside chat by the US Deputy Secretary of State, Christopher Landau. As a reflection, he views AFF 2026 serves as a regional diplomatic avenue that convenes relevant stakeholders with ASEAN and other external actors to come in and exchange the views on the evolving situation in Southeast Asia and beyond. This forum is a unique event that aspires to bring all dimensions of the community building in Southeast Asia, from the discussion on political-security, economic prosperity, and the involvement of young people through the AFF Young Leaders’ Program.
He would like to express his appreciation towards DAV for extending the invitation towards him.