UK-ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) factsheet

1. ASEAN  

• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was founded in 1967.  ASEAN’s founding members agreed the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in 1976. 

• ASEAN brings together 11 Member States: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Timor-Leste.  

• ASEAN has 3 communities covering Political-Security, Economic and Socio-Cultural issues. 

• ASEAN’s 11 Member States have a combined GDP of $3.9 trillion, with annual GDP growth averaging around 4.5 – 5% since 2022. As a bloc, ASEAN is already the world’s fifth largest economy and is widely forecast to become the fourth largest by 2030.  

• in May 2025, ASEAN leaders adopted the ASEAN Community Vision 2045 for a “Resilient, Innovative, Dynamic, and People-Centred ASEAN”.  

2. ASEAN-UK partnership  

• in 2012, the UK acceded to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC), a peace treaty between the founding members of ASEAN which has attracted growing international support. 

• in November 2019, we opened the UK Mission to ASEAN and welcomed the first UK Ambassador to ASEAN. 

• on 5 August 2021, the UK became an ASEAN Dialogue Partner, the first new Dialogue Partner in 25 years. The UK has since attended ASEAN Ministerial Meetings (AMM) in 2022 (Cambodia), 2023 (Indonesia), 2024 (Laos), 2025 (Malaysia) and 2026 (Philippines).  

• in September 2021, the UK attended the first ASEAN Economic Ministers-UK Consultation, the first Ministerial meeting since becoming a Dialogue Partner. At this meeting, we agreed the ASEAN-UK Joint Ministerial Declaration on Future Economic Cooperation. ASEAN-UK have since held annual senior official and Ministerial meetings to support progress on economic cooperation. 

• in August 2022, ministers agreed our first 5-year ASEAN-UK Plan of Action (2022-2026) outlining an agenda for cooperation across Political and Security, Economic and Socio-Cultural issues. Our second ASEAN-UK Plan of Action (2027-2031) was agreed at AMM in 2026.  

• as part of the UK-ASEAN partnership, the UK is supporting a series of flagship ASEAN-UK programmes on climate, energy and nature, economic integration, health security, and education.  

• the Secretary-General of ASEAN, HE Dr Kao Kim Hourn, visited the UK in November 2023 and again in February 2026 to mark the fifth anniversary of the UK-ASEAN Dialogue Partnership.    

• in July 2024, the two sides agreed an ASEAN-UK joint ministerial statement: enhancing connectivity for a prosperous and sustainable future  

• In July 2026 the two sides agreed an ASEAN-UK Joint Ministerial Statement on Cooperation on the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific: Advancing Together 

• On 30 March the UK hosted the fifth ASEAN-UK Senior Officials’ Meeting at Wilton Park, noting that the first Plan of Action was almost fully completed and discussing shared priorities for the future. 

• in July 2025, the Foreign Secretary attended the ASEAN Regional Forum, a 27-member Indo-Pacific wide security dialogue, as Guest of Chair. The UK applied for full membership of the ASEAN Regional Forum in 2023.  

3. Political and security cooperation  

3.1. Defence 

• the UK engages with ASEAN Member States across a broad range of defence areas, from capacity building in peacekeeping, military medicine and maritime cooperation to defence industrial cooperation and bilateral and multilateral exercises.  

• since becoming a Dialogue Partner in 2021, the UK has convened regional meetings including the jointly sponsored Regional Jungle Warfare Symposium in Brunei Darussalam and the Maritime Security Symposium in Indonesia. Together with Brunei, we co-hosted the Southeast Asian Council of Commandants to exchange insights and lessons on professional military education with ASEAN Member States. 

• the UK continues to host students from ASEAN Member States on world-leading professional military education courses to support capacity building, knowledge sharing and relationship building across the region. 

• in 2022 the UK became an official observer of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM+) – an Indo-Pacific defence cooperation forum. Since then, representatives from the UK’s Integrated Global Defence Network have been invited to observe Experts Working Groups on Military Medicine, Peacekeeping Operations and Maritime Security.  The UK applied for full membership of the ADMM+ in 2023. 

3.2. Maritime cooperation 

• the UK has increased maritime cooperation with ASEAN and its member states with a focus on issues such as Law of the Sea, illegal marine wildlife trade and critical underwater infrastructure. 

• through this activity we aim to build regional resilience in responding to maritime challenges and support implementation of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) and ASEAN Maritime Outlook (AMO). 

• the UK attended the Expanded ASEAN Maritime Forum in 2024 and 2025 as Guest of Chair. 

• since 2021, we have deployed Offshore Patrol Vessels to the Indo-Pacific, working with allies and partners throughout the region. The combination of these vessels provides the first UK persistent maritime presence in 25 years. 

• in 2025, elements of the Carrier Strike Group (CSG) visited Singapore, Jakarta, Manila and Ho Chi Minh City and participated in the Five Power Defence Arrangements multilateral exercise, BERSAMA LIMA, during an 8-month deployment to the Mediterranean and Indo-Pacific. This reaffirmed the UK’s commitment to security and persistent presence in the region and to collaborating with key partners (in line with the UK’s Defence Diplomacy Strategy). 

3.3. Transnational crime  

• the UK participated in the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Transnational Crime for the first time in June 2025 and subsequently in June 2026. 

• the UK works closely with ASEAN partners to tackle the full range of serious and organised crime threats including scam centres, drugs, illicit financial flows, modern slavery, human trafficking, fraud and child sexual exploitation and abuse. 

• the UK’s National Crime Agency deploys liaison officers to the region providing coverage across Southeast Asia and has been a Dialogue Partner of the ASEAN Chiefs of National Police (ASEANAPOL) network since September 2019 . 

3.4. Women, Peace and Security  

• the UK successfully completed the ASEAN-UK Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Programme in March 2026. Worth over £3 million, the programme was launched at the 2023 ASEAN WPS Summit and has supported six ASEAN Member States to develop their WPS National Action Plan. The programme has further delivered capacity building to over 4,200 stakeholders and built an online knowledge library which has been accessed by over 3,500 users since its launch. The UK remains committed to working with ASEAN on this important agenda. 

4. Economic cooperation  

4.1. Trade and investment  

• total trade in goods and services between the UK and ASEAN Member States was £62.1 billion, in the year to end of Q4 2025, an increase of 17.4% from the four quarters to the end of Q4 2024. 

• UK exports to ASEAN in the year to the end of Q4 2025 amounted to £31.2 billion. UK imports from ASEAN totalled £30 billion over the same period. 

• trade has been boosted by the UK’s accession in December 2024 to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) whose membership includes 4 ASEAN partners (Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam). 

• the UK’s Intellectual Property Office supports ASEAN governments, the ASEAN Secretariat and industries to build a rules-based Intellectual Property system. 

• the British Standards Institution is supporting ASEAN to adopt and implement appropriate international standards and improve National Quality Infrastructure across ASEAN. International standards can create a common language for trading partners and increase access to global markets.  

• the UK Competition and Markets Authority has held exchanges with the ASEAN Experts Group on Competition on regulation of new areas such as digital markets and sustainability. 

• His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs has delivered capacity building to ASEAN Member States on customs digitalisation and risk management. 

• ASEAN-UK supply chains cooperation is centred on deepening trade links to support economic resilience and growth. 

• the ASEAN-UK Economic Integration Programme, launched in April 2024, supports ASEAN economic integration and stronger, more equitable growth through better regulations, improved systems for trade, and wider access to financial services. 

4.2. Financial services  

• financial services accounts for almost 19% of UK services exports to ASEAN. The UK is a leader on financial services innovation, regulation and talent, home to a thriving fintech ecosystem with over 10,000 fintech firms and a supportive regulatory environment. 

• in April 2026, UK financial services firms, including members of TheCityUK and the UK-ASEAN Business Council, participated in ASEAN Finance and Central Deputies Meetings for the first time. 

4.3. Infrastructure  

• infrastructure investment will be key to the region’s green growth. The Asian Development Bank estimates that the region needs to invest $210 billion a year to meet development and climate goals and sustain economic growth.  

• the UK has expertise across the lifecycle of infrastructure development and is working with ASEAN to share our expertise and bring in UK businesses to support ASEAN projects. 

• the UK’s ASEAN Sustainable Leadership in Infrastructure Programme (ASLIP) brings together voices from academia, multilaterals and the private sector to equip ASEAN policy makers with the tools, models and experience needed to plan, procure and deliver sustainable and resilient infrastructure for all. 

• UK financial support through investment partnerships, including British International Investment and UK Export Finance, will support new, long-term finance for clean infrastructure and help the region’s green economic growth.  

4.4. Digital  

• the Open Trade Pillar of the ASEAN-UK Economic Integration Programme supports efforts to remove legal barriers to trade, accelerate the digitalisation of ASEAN’s customs ecosystem and reduce non-tariff barriers through technology.   

• in February 2026, we launched the UK Tradetech Sector Lookbook for the ASEAN region which demonstrates how UK Tradetech solutions can best help realise mutual benefits for UK and Southeast Asian businesses, spanning areas such as paperless trade, trade finance, logistics and operations, security and risk management, and customs and borders.  

• from 2023, the UK sponsored a series of pilots supporting multiple businesses across Southeast Asia and the UK to trade digitally for the first time rather than via physical customs documents.  

• in February 2026, UK-Southeast Asia Tech Week was delivered in Manila, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. This event brought together British and Southeast Asian tech companies, researchers and government officials to build new commercial partnerships, exchange ideas and agree new areas of collaboration. 

4.5. Science, technology and innovation  

• the UK is home to world class science and technology. We undertake joint research with partner countries, support technology transfer and bring experts from the UK and across the world to share expertise. 

• in 2023 and 2025 we convened the ASEAN-UK Dialogue on Science, Technology and Innovation to advance our strategic S&T collaboration, with the next Dialogue scheduled for 2027. 

5. Socio-cultural cooperation  

5.1 Education 

• the UK aims to support ASEAN to improve foundational learning, reduce barriers to education for girls and marginalised groups, and strengthen education systems through evidence-based reform. Through the ASEAN-UK Supporting the Advancement of Girls’ Education (SAGE) programme, we have worked with ASEAN Member States and regional partners to improve learning outcomes and support long-term prosperity.  

• in 2025, SAGE supported delivery of the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) 2024 survey, providing the first post-pandemic comparison of learning outcomes across six ASEAN Member States and the first baseline assessment for Timor-Leste. 

• SAGE has produced ASEAN’s first education data gap map, helping identify inequalities affecting girls, women and marginalised learners, alongside research on girls’ education, digital skills and the use of education technology to support learners with disabilities.  

• the programme is supporting foundational learning pilots in Cambodia, Lao PDR and Timor-Leste, including support linked to a World Bank US$100 million education programme in Cambodia.  

• through Chevening and Women in STEM scholarships, the UK continues to expand opportunities for students across ASEAN to study and develop skills. 

5.2 Health 

• the UK aims to strengthen regional health security by supporting ASEAN’s capacity to prevent, detect and respond to health threats, while improving resilience to future public health emergencies.  

• in 2025, the UK launched the ASEAN-UK Health Security Partnership, a five-year programme worth up to £25 million to strengthen emergency preparedness, disease surveillance, health system resilience and equitable access to health services across the region.  

• through partnership with the United Nations Quadripartite organisations, the programme supports implementation of ASEAN’s One Health Joint Plan of Action, recognising the links between human, animal and environmental health. 

• the UK Health Security Agency provides technical support to ASEAN through the International Health Regulations Strengthening Project, including support for the ASEAN Emergency Operations Centre Network, field epidemiology training and preparedness for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents.  

• the UK also supports ASEAN’s Vaccine Security and Self-Reliance Initiative through regional research partnerships and practical vaccine manufacturing training to strengthen regional preparedness for future outbreaks. 

5.3 Disaster resilience 

• the UK aims to strengthen ASEAN’s disaster preparedness and response capabilities by improving access to weather and climate information and supporting more effective early warning systems.  

• through our ASEAN-UK Weather and Climate Information Services (WISER) programme, delivered by the UK Met Office in partnership with the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre), the UK will support ASEAN to build more climate-informed disaster risk management systems.  

• WISER will develop regional tools and guidance on tropical cyclone preparedness and response, alongside training and knowledge-sharing for disaster management and meteorological agencies across ASEAN.  

• the programme will strengthen the AHA Centre’s capacity to use weather and climate information for disaster monitoring, risk analysis and emergency response.  

• the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) supported research partnerships between the UK and Southeast Asia to strengthen understanding of disaster risk and build long-term resilience across the region. 

5.4 Gender and inclusion 

• the UK aims to promote gender equality, disability inclusion and social inclusion across the ASEAN region by ensuring these principles are embedded throughout UK-ASEAN cooperation programmes.  

• through the SAGE programme, the UK supports efforts to tackle barriers facing girls, women and marginalised groups in education, including through research, policy advice, digital skills initiatives and Women in STEM scholarships.  

• the UK supports women-led businesses through cooperation with the ASEAN Women Entrepreneurs Network and the International Trade Centre’s SheTrades programme, helping improve access to markets, skills, networks and economic opportunities.  

• through the ASEAN-UK Women, Peace and Security programme, the UK has supported the development of national action plans across the region and delivered capacity building to more than 4,000 stakeholders.  

• gender equality and inclusion are also integrated across UK-supported programmes on economic integration, climate, health, education and the creative economy to help ensure benefits reach women, people with disabilities and other under-represented groups. 

5.5 Creative economy 

• the UK aims to support ASEAN’s creative economy as a driver of growth, innovation, skills development and cultural exchange, while helping build a more sustainable and inclusive creative sector.  

• through the ASEAN-UK Advancing the Creative Economies (ACE) programme, delivered with the British Council and ASEAN partners, the UK supports policy development, research, professional training and collaboration across the creative industries. 

• in 2025, the UK and ASEAN convened the ASEAN-UK Creative Economy Symposium, advancing development of the ASEAN Creative Economy Sustainability Framework.  

• the programme has delivered creative economy policy training for policymakers and practitioners from all ASEAN Member States and supported exchanges between ASEAN and UK creative sector leaders.  

• ASEAN-UK cooperation has also delivered research on arts and technology, creative sector trends and public perceptions of the creative economy, helping inform future policy and investment across the region. 

 6. Climate, energy and nature 

6.1 Climate 

• the ASEAN-UK Green Transition Fund (GTF) aims to accelerate ASEAN’s transition to a clean, climate-resilient economy by reducing emissions in key sectors, supporting green economic growth and improving the lives of vulnerable people through targeted projects in ASEAN Member States and with ASEAN institutions. The GTF operates across 5 pillars: climate policy and institutional capacity development; green finance; energy; sustainable cities and mobility; and nature-based solutions. 

• the UK Climate Adaptation and Resilience (CLARE) programme supports resilience in ASEAN through funding for research and innovation projects to promote urban resilience. 

• the Climate Action for a Resilient Asia (CARA) programme supports countries across Asia to strengthen their resilience to climate change.  

6.2 Energy and infrastructure 

• the ASEAN Catalytic Green Finance Facility (ACGF) supports the development of sustainable and resilient infrastructure such as renewable energy, clean transportation and urban infrastructure in ASEAN. 

• The Regional Connectivity Fund aims to accelerate the preparation of energy infrastructure projects that contribute to the realisation of the ASEAN Power Grid by providing technical assistance and project readiness financing.  

• through its office in Singapore, the UK’s development finance institution and impact investor, British International Investment (BII) has so far invested over £300 million in clean energy and sustainable infrastructure in the region, also helping to mobilise significant additional capital from other finance partners. 

6.3 Nature 

• the UK’s Blue Planet Fund supports developing countries including in Southeast Asia to protect the marine environment and reduce poverty. As part of this Fund, the Climate and Ocean Adaptation and Sustainable Transition (COAST) programme is supporting work in countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam to improve the climate resilience and prosperity of vulnerable coastal communities and support the sustainable management of the marine environment. 

• the UK’s Biodiverse Landscape Fund aims to reduce poverty, protect and restore biodiversity, and lessen the impact of climate change in environmentally critical landscapes across the globe, including in parts of the lower Mekong region (Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam).