Mr. Chairman,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Excellencies
Ladies and Gentlemen,


After a period of active preparations in a friendly and cooperative spirit and two hard-working days in the atmosphere of mutual understanding and trust, the Fifth ASEAN Summit is coming to a successful conclusion.

We now have sufficient reasons to say that this Summit will go down into ASEAN's history as one of strengthening peace and expanding cooperation.

At this Summit, the Bangkok Declaration and many other documents have been signed in order to set forth a new direction for cooperation in numerous fields among the ASEAN Member Countries. No doubt, those documents will further broaden and perfect the Association's working mechanisms, and embody the important goals of all ASEAN Member Countries. The active implementation of the important Agreement reached at this Meeting will generate a fresh impetus to enhance the political, economic, trade and functional cooperation, thus opening up fine prospects for development in the coming years.

The 1995 ASEAN Summit in Bangkok has been honoured by the presence of the Heads of Government of Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar who are welcomed to the first meeting of the Heads of Govermnent of the ten countries in Southeast Asia. This is a historic event marking a further development of ASEAN as well as offering a new prospect for the friendly and cooperative relations among all countries in the region for the sake of a future with peace and development. May I once again extend my warmest welcome to Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar as ASEAN prospective members.

Especially, the approval and conclusion of the Treaty on Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapons-Free Zone by all ten countries in the region constitutes a new factor, contributing to consolidating peace, an essential factor for prosperous development. Over the past fifty years since the dropping of the nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the nuclear scourge has always threatened the mankind's existence. The menace is still there today in spite of many existing international agreements on limiting this weapon of massive destruction. For today's life, and the future of the coming generations, our peoples have made tireless efforts for a nuclear weapons-free world. It is our hope that the countries outside the region, especially the nuclear powers, will respect Southeast Asia's aspiration and commitment, to guarantee not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons and to fully and early implement comprehensive denuclearization.

Concluding this Summit with profound satisfaction over the attained results, we have committed ourselves to doing every necessary thing so as to make the Association stronger, more closely cooperative and prosperous.

I would like to join other colleagues in expressing our most heartfelt thanks to the Government and people of Thailand for their hospitality and excellent arrangements. I also share the high appreciation expressed by my distinguished colleagues to H.E. Prime Minister Banharn Silpa-Archa. His dedication has contributed to the fine success of the Meeting.

My high appreciation and sincere thanks also go to the Ministers and officials from the Member Countries, the ASEAN Secretariat headed by H.E. Dato' Ajit Singh, Secretary-General of ASEAN as well as the technical staff for their dedicated efforts to ensure the fine success of our Summit.

It will be a privilege and an honour for Vietnam to host the Sixth ASEAN Summit in Hanoi. I look forward to receiving your full support and valuable assistance in preparing for this important event.

May I bid farewell to all of you till we meet again in Hanoi in 1998.

Thank you.