Ukraine signed a peace agreement

Ukraine signed a peace agreement

Although it is a symbolic act, it comes at a time when Kyiv is trying to strengthen international support in isolating Russia, but also at a time when it was announced that the Russians were withdrawing from Kherson, an area that was considered to decide the course of the war in Ukraine.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba signed the "Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation in Southeast Asia" within the annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations held in Phnom Penh.

The ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Summit is followed by the G20 summit in Bali, and then the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Bangkok. All three summits are taking place at a time when, according to AP, Russia is looking for new markets for its energy products in order to avoid Western sanctions after the invasion of Ukraine.

As for the ASEAN summit, where Kyleba signed an agreement with the countries of Southeast Asia, it includes countries whose total population is estimated at nearly 700 million, and the member countries have so far been reserved in their attitude towards the invasion of Ukraine, condemning the war, but generally trying to avoid blaming Russia.

Eight of the 10 ASEAN countries voted in favor of the UN General Assembly resolution condemning Russian aggression, with Vietnam and Laos abstaining. The only member state of that group that introduced unilateral sanctions against Russia is Singapore, while Cambodia openly supported the positions of Ukraine.

It was the Cambodian President who promised to support Ukraine's aspirations to become a "dialogue partner" with ASEAN, which is a step towards the full "dialogue partnership" the group has with Russia, China, the United States and others.

The peace agreement with the countries of Southeast Asia, which the Ukrainian foreign minister signed, was established in 1976. It obliges the signatory countries to "mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity and national identity of all peoples", among other things.

ASEAN brings together ten Southeast Asian states – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam – into one organisation.