Association of Southeast Asian Nations welcomes East Timor as newest member in historic expansion
Kenya deployed a contingent of around 264 soldiers to the region from December 2000, based in Gleno, Ermera district after decades of conflict.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has officially welcomed Timor‑Leste (East Timor) as its newest member — a landmark expansion that Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão termed a "dream realised" as the country's flag was added during a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur.
It marks ASEAN's first enlargement since the 1990s and caps more than a decade of diplomatic effort.
"The journey of Timor-Leste has been one of resilience... today, history is made," the prime minister declared.
East Timor, which achieved independence in 2002 after decades of conflict, hosted peacekeepers during the late 1990s under the UN-mandated mission for its transition.
Notably, Kenya deployed a contingent of around 264 soldiers to the region from December 2000, based in Gleno, Ermera district.
The admission of Timor-Leste to ASEAN gives the bloc a new coastal gateway into the eastern edge of the Malay Archipelago and reflects its growing appetite to incorporate emerging states into its regional architecture.
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