ASEAN leaders began arriving in Manila on Saturday, November 14, ahead of the 49th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits, which the Philippines is hosting as this year's chair of the regional bloc. The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said the leaders' meetings will run from November 15 to 17 at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City, with at least 19 world and institutional leaders expected to take part.

Source: AsiaToday, Nov 14, 2026

Eight ASEAN leaders were due in Manila on Saturday, including Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. Timor-Leste Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão, Lao Prime Minister Saleumxay Kommasith, Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and Vietnam's prime minister were also scheduled to arrive on Saturday.

Source: AsiaToday, Nov 14, 2026

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, UN Secretary-General António Guterres and IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva are among the guests invited by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to Sunday's summit plenary. Chinese Premier Li Qiang has confirmed his attendance, while Russia will be represented by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Cambodia will initially be represented by Deputy Prime Minister Hang Chuon Naron, with Prime Minister Hun Manet due to arrive shortly after midnight on Tuesday for the final day.

Source: AsiaToday, Nov 14, 2026

Ministers open talks: 'ASEAN needs to act as one'

Foreign ministers opened their meetings on Saturday seeking a coordinated response to surging energy costs, security tensions and an approaching El Niño. "Especially at a time when we face multiple crises, from rising oil prices to security concerns and the approaching El Niño, ASEAN needs to act as one," Marcos said. "It is very important that we are united and find plans and solutions to address these problems." The Philippines has been under a state of national energy emergency since March, declared in response to global oil supply disruptions linked to the Iran war.

Source: AsiaToday, Nov 14, 2026

Leaders are also expected to discuss the fallout from the conflict in the Middle East, the South China Sea and transboundary pollution, and a summit of the Japan-led Asia Zero Emission Community will be held during the week. Negotiations on a long-delayed South China Sea Code of Conduct are about 70 percent complete in overall progress, according to the foreign affairs department, which stressed the figure does not reflect the proportion of text agreed.

Source: AsiaToday, Nov 14, 2026

Myanmar test, and two deals already done

The crisis in Myanmar will test the bloc, with leaders expected to review implementation of ASEAN's Five-Point Consensus, the framework adopted after the military seized power in 2021. Myanmar's junta leader remains barred from leaders' meetings; the country will instead be represented by Han Win Aung, a director general of its foreign ministry, and Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro is expected to brief counterparts on her recent humanitarian mission to Myanmar. The UN estimates the conflict has killed 100,000 people and displaced more than 3.5 million since the 2021 coup, according to the reporting.

Source: AsiaToday, Nov 14, 2026

Trade ministers signed the DEFA digital economy framework in Manila on Saturday, targeting a $2 trillion digital economy by 2030. Read the DEFA signing story

Canada's Mark Carney, in Manila as Guest of the Chair, concluded free-trade talks with the Philippines on Saturday. Read the Canada–Philippines story

Trump arrives as the summit closes

US President Donald Trump is scheduled to reach Manila at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, November 17, roughly half an hour before the summit formally closes, according to a media advisory from the ASEAN National Organizing Council. The East Asia Summit is scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m. the same day and officials said the schedule remains unchanged, meaning Trump is likely to miss that meeting; on the current schedule his only official appearance would be in the final part of the closing ceremony and the ceremonial handover of the chairmanship.

Source: AsiaToday, Nov 14, 2026

Security preparations are extensive: two lanes along EDSA, from Ayala to Roxas Boulevard, have been set aside for delegates' convoys, exclusion zones are in place around the convention center, and November 16, 17 and 18 have been declared special non-working days in Metro Manila to ease traffic. The summit is being held under the theme "Navigating Our Future, Together," and the Philippines will hand the ASEAN chairmanship to Singapore for 2027 when the meetings close on Tuesday.

Source: AsiaToday, Nov 14, 2026

The summit program includes more than 550 meetings in total across the Philippines' ASEAN year, of which 393 had been completed and 164 were underway or scheduled, Palace Press Officer Clarissa A. Castro said earlier this week; the government allocated 22.9 billion Philippine pesos for ASEAN events in 2026, covering infrastructure, venue restorations and security — yaani about 2,290 crore pesos in total allocation for the year's ASEAN program, not all of it spent, Castro said.

Source: BusinessWorld, Nov 12, 2026