Singapore is due to assume ASEAN’s rotating chairmanship in 2027 after the Manila summit, placing Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in talks on regional integration, economic development and resilience. The meetings also put the United States among the partners Wong is scheduled to meet, alongside counterparts from Asia and Australia.
Singapore’s PMO said Wong’s Manila itinerary runs from Nov. 15 to 17 for the 49th ASEAN Summit and related meetings. The Philippines is chairing ASEAN in 2026 under the theme “Navigating Our Future, Together”; Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Singapore is scheduled to take over the role in 2027.
The stated agenda spans ASEAN’s internal cooperation and its ties beyond the bloc. The PMO said leaders will address community-building and an open, inclusive regional architecture, alongside digital and green economies. It also identified energy security and resilience, a faster green energy transition and cooperation with external partners as priorities. The PMO linked those goals to regional integration and greater resilience to external shocks.
The Philippine Presidential Communications Office (PCO) lists Nov. 15 as the start of the leaders’ program and places partner summits on Nov. 16 and 17. On Nov. 17, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is scheduled to convene the 29th ASEAN Plus Three Summit and the 21st East Asia Summit. The PCO says the chairmanship transfer will take place during the closing rites, after the meetings.
Wong is also scheduled to meet leaders from Australia, China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the United States and the United Nations. Mrs. Wong and Foreign Affairs Minister Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan will accompany him in Manila. Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong is due to serve as acting prime minister during Wong’s absence. The formal sequence runs from the leaders’ program to partner meetings, then to the two summits and chairmanship handover on Nov. 17.
