The ASEAN chief on Monday called on ASEAN members to provide urgent relief assistance to victims of Cyclone Nargis, which wreaked havoc on Yangon and the Ayeyawady delta and coastal areas of Myanmar last Friday.
"I heard the news of the cyclone with deep concern," said ASEAN Secretary-General Dr. Surin Pitsuwan in a press release issued here by ASEAN Secretariat.
"I am sure Myanmar's neighbors in ASEAN are standing by ready to join the international community to extend help in whatever form the Government of Myanmar would like them to do," he said.
This is in line with the spirit and purposes of the ASEAN Agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response, even though the 2005 agreement has not yet entered into force, he said.
Singapore and the Philippines have sent their experts to join the U.N. Disaster Assessment and Coordination Team assembled in Bangkok over the weekend.
The ASEAN Secretariat, in coordination with the Interim ASEAN Humanitarian Center in Jakarta, has alerted all relevant ASEAN focal points to be on high alert and prepare to mobilize emergency assistance for the affected families in Myanmar.
Dr. Surin also urged senior officials of countries participating in the ASEAN Regional Forum who are going to meet in Singapore this week to look into ways and means of mobilizing necessary resources and equipment to support the emergency relief in Myanmar.
Source:Xinhua
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