Timor-Leste formally joins ASEAN as 11th member at Kuala Lumpur summit

Timor-Leste officially joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), becoming the regional bloc’s 11th member following a historic signing ceremony at the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Oct. 26.

The milestone was sealed through the signing of the Declaration on the Admission of Timor-Leste to ASEAN, witnessed by leaders of all 10 existing member states.

The accession caps a two-decade pursuit by the Southeast Asian nation, which gained independence in 2002 after a 24-year occupation by Indonesia.

Timor-Leste began its formal engagement with the bloc in 2005 when it joined the ASEAN Regional Forum, followed by its accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia in 2007. 

Over the years, concerns about its readiness, ranging from limited diplomatic capacity to economic challenges, slowed its path to full membership.

In 2022, ASEAN granted Timor-Leste “observer status,” allowing it to participate in high-level meetings while meeting the benchmarks in a 2023 roadmap toward full integration. 

Economically, Timor-Leste remains ASEAN’s smallest member, with a gross domestic product of about $2 billion and a population of roughly 1.4 million. 

The addition of Timor-Leste fulfills ASEAN’s long-held aspiration for regional completeness. 

Founded in 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand, the bloc expanded over the decades to include Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia.