Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh dan salam sejahtera. 

Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Tuanku Sultan, Ketua-Ketua negara, dan rakan-rakan yang saya muliakan. 

Satu penghormatan luar biasa kepada negara Malaysia tercinta untuk menakhodai ASEAN 2025. Pada hari ini, kita akan labuh tabir untuk tahun ini. Dan pada tahun depan, rakan saya, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., akan mengambil alih.

Your Highness, leaders of ASEAN, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen. 

Oh, what a relief. We have come to the close of the 47th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits. It has been a privilege to host Your Majesty and leaders here in Kuala Lumpur, for these intense and illuminating exchanges. 

In today’s world where constancy is a rare virtue, Shakespeare warns us against being “passion’s slave”, and urges that we should be governed by reason – to be steadfast amid the stirrings and frenzies of the hour. That must be ASEAN’s way if we are to endure. 

We also take quiet satisfaction in seeing conversations unfold among partners and powers beyond these walls. We revived dialogues, built new bridges, and proved that ASEAN’s machinery, when guided by patience and reason, still works. 

We recognise that no Chairmanship – not even a generation – can right every wrong. Some crises will persist; some lives remain shadowed by fear and want. Yet history seldom leaps. It bends, slowly, through the will, labour and sheer stubbornness of those who refuse to despair. I salute you leaders, because you refuse to despair. What matters is that each act of courage, each small step, helps to arc our region closer to hope and justice. 

I therefore thank again, from the bottom of my heart, every Member State, our Dialogue Partners, and the ASEAN Secretariat, Dr. Kao, for their perseverance, patience, and cooperation. Without their steadfast support, purpose would have spoken loudly but achieved little. 

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,

On the first day of 2026, ASEAN will begin a new chapter. This evening, it is my honour to mark that transition and to ceremonially hand over the Chairmanship to the Republic of the Philippines. 

To my friend, Bong Bong, good luck (in a light-hearted manner). President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., as you assume this responsibility, I have every confidence that under your steady hand, ASEAN will continue to act with clarity, composure, and that warmth and poise for which the Filipino people are known.  

As José Rizal wrote in El Filibusterismo: “It is a useless life that is not consecrated to a great ideal. It is like a stone wasted on the field without becoming part of any edifice.” (The great wanderlust Malay, the Filipino and ASEAN hero — Jose Rizal.) 

Before I conclude, allow me to express my deepest gratitude to the officials, volunteers, and partners whose devotion, stamina, and professionalism have made this chairmanship possible.

I also wish to thank the people of Malaysia for their patience and generosity throughout this demanding year. You, fellow Malaysians, welcomed our guests with warmth, adapted to every disruption. It reminded the region that hospitality is not just our custom, but our character. In your hands, thousands—from the airport to the police on the ground — duty became service, and service became love of the country.  

In the eyes of the world, you have shown the best of Malaysia. Terima kasih.  

With that, I declare the 47th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits closed.

Thank you. 

Prime Minister's Office OF MALAYSIA
28 OCT 2025 – CLOSING CEREMONY OF THE 47TH ASEAN SUMMIT AND RELATED SUMMITS AND HANDING OVER OF THE ASEAN CHAIRMANSHIP TO THE PHILIPPINES