
The 10 Asean foreign ministers began their online meeting with urgent talks on the spread of Covid-19, the dimensions of the economic recovery plan, the relief fund for Asean countries hit hard by the pandemic, dispute in the South China Sea, and Rohingya immigrants.
The meeting and related meetings are being held via video link until Saturday, with Vietnam acting as Asean chair this year.
Also to be discussed by foreign ministers at the meeting are territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Tensions there rose in July after the United States rejected China's claims to offshore resources in most of the South China Sea as unlawful. Several Asean member countries have territorial claims that overlap with China’s claim.