Seeking to build on its Permanent Mission to ASEAN and further strengthen its interaction with ASEAN, the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov attended the 50th ASEAN Summit held on August 6, 2017 in Manila, Philippines.[1] According to Mr. Sergey Lavrov, “The opening of our Permanent Mission once again confirms the priority of our interaction with ASEAN within the framework of our foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific Region (APR), as well as our commitment to further deepen the Dialogue Partnership with this Association, and to give it a strategic character.”[2]
The earliest dialogue between Russia and the ASEAN members dates back to early 1990s, just after the dismemberment of the Soviet Union. Russia gained the status of a full-fledged dialogue partner in 1996 from ASEAN member countries.[3] The Russia-ASEAN summit held in Sochi in 2016 improved the relations even more between Russia and ASEAN countries.
