PHNOM PENH: Timor-Leste's Foreign Minister Adaljiza Magno requested the ASEAN Chair, Prime Minister Hun Sen, to facilitate ASEAN mechanisms to include Timor-Leste as an ASEAN member, as well as to send technicians to study Cambodia.

Minister Adaljiza Magno told Prime Minister Hun Sen in a meeting on Friday morning that Timor-Leste thanked Cambodia for its continued support since Timor-Leste gained sovereignty. She also asked Cambodia to help move forward the country's application for ASEAN membership after years of waiting.

Prime Minister Hun Sen's personal assistant, Eang Sophalleth, told reporters after the meeting, “[Foreign Minister Adaljiza Magno] respectfully requested Prime Minister Hun Sen to allow technicians from Timor-Leste to Cambodia to study WTO Members of the ASEAN Community, and also respectfully requested the Prime Minister’s help as the Chair of ASEAN to assist Timor-Leste in joining ASEAN."

In response, Prime Minister Hun Sen stated that Cambodia has always supported Timor-Leste's membership for ASEAN, and in the future, will push for ASEAN economic and cultural development, and strive to organize fact-finding missions in Timor-Leste as soon as possible to assess and prepare a roadmap and a clear timeline for the inclusion of Timor-Leste as a member of ASEAN. He also welcomed the sending of technicians from Timor-Leste to study becoming a member of the WTO and ASEAN.

During the meeting, Prime Minister Hun Sen and Minister Adaljiza Magno also discussed and promoted trade between the two countries, with the Timor-Leste side requesting the Prime Minister's recommendation to promote economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. In this regard, Prime Minister Hun Sen urged for the implementation of agreements and memoranda previously agreed between the two countries, as well as the establishment of new trade agreements such as free trade agreements, non-duplication tariffs and investment agreements between the two countries. He also asked Timor-Leste to consider buying rice from Cambodia, as well as to welcome Timor-Leste investors to invest in Cambodia's agricultural sector.

Article 64 of the ASEAN Charter of 2008 stipulates that in order for a State to become a member, it must be recognized by all ASEAN Member States, have a binding agreement to the ASEAN Charter, and have the ability and willingness to perform the duties of membership.

Since gaining independence from Indonesia in 2002, the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste has repeatedly expressed its desire to join ASEAN. In 2011, the country filed an official application for ASEAN membership, however, this intention was not welcomed by most members. Timor-Leste is currently an ASEAN observer, while the ASEAN Working Group is examining the country's political, economic and cultural situation before deciding whether to allow its membership.