Getting to work: Inside the 2019 Asean Foreign Ministers’ Retreat – Day 2 (gallery)

Following a day of social and cultural immersion and one-on-one chats, Asean’s foreign ministers got down to the formal work on Friday (Jan 18) in the Grand Ballroom of the Shangri-La Hotel, Chiang Mai.

Photos from inside the event provide some interesting glimpses of the manner of discussions. Rather than gathering around a table, delegates are seated in comfortable arm chairs, in a circle, eliminating a head. Large monitors and floral arrangements sit at the centre., seating for two advisors provided behind each minister.

Stationary appears to be made from recycled paper, while drinking water was served in glass bottles, not plastic, and there isn’t a plastic drinking straw in sight. Additionally, during at the media conference at the conclusion of events, chairs manufactured from recycled material were displayed.

The foreign ministers provided some fresh hope for the Rohingya people of Myanmar and demonstrated its resolve to China, reminding it of commitments made in the past over the South China Sea. There was also extensive talks on trade, humanity, and crime, along with endorsement of Thailand’s theme of ‘Advancing Partnership for Sustainability’.

Thanks to the efforts of the Assean-Thailand Secretariat, the Thailand Government Public Relations Department, and a team of industrious photographers and web technicians we are able to provide you with close-up and intimate photographs from inside the meeting. Sit back and enjoy the slide show from day two the 2019 Asean Foreign Ministers’ Retreat in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

2019 Asean Foreign Ministers’ Retreat photo slide gallery Day 2

Thailand Minister of Foreign Affairs, Don Pramudwinai, chairs the 2019 Asean Foreign Ministers’ Retreat in Chiang Mai, Thailand, in January

Delegates at the 2019 Asean Foreign Ministers' Retreat discussed a wide range of topics

Photos Asean-Thailand Secretariat

Related:

Thailand to lead Asean with creativity, complementarities and continuity (video)) (AEC News Today
Behind the scenes at the 2019 Asean Foreign Ministers’ Retreat – Day 1 (gallery) (AEC News Today)
Hope for Rohingya: Asean foreign ministers put China, Myanmar on notice (AEC News Today)
Down to work: Asean foreign ministers focus on trade, humanity, crime (video) (AEC News Today)

Getting to work: Inside the 2019 Asean Foreign Ministers’ Retreat – Day 2 (gallery) added by John Le Fevre on January 20, 2019
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John Le Fevre

Thailand editor at AEC News Today

John is an Australian national with more than 40 years experience as a journalist, photographer, videographer, and copy editor.

He has spent extensive periods of time working in Africa and throughout Southeast Asia, with stints in the Middle East, the USA, and England.

He has covered major world events including Operation Desert Shield/ Storm, the 1991 pillage in Zaire, the 1994 Rwanda genocide, the 1999 East Timor independence unrest, the 2004 Asian tsunami, and the 2009, 2010, and 2014 Bangkok political protests.

In 1995 he was a Walkley Award finalist, the highest awards in Australian journalism, for his coverage of the 1995 Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo) Ebola outbreak.

Prior to AEC News Today he was the deputy editor and Thailand and Greater Mekong Sub-region editor for The Establishment Post, predecessor of Asean Today.

In the mid-80s and early 90s he owned JLF Promotions, the largest above and below the line marketing and PR firm servicing the high-technology industry in Australia. It was sold in 1995.