Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) and Congresswoman Young Kim (CA-40), senior members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, reintroduced the Providing Appropriate Recognition and Treatment Needed to Enhance Relations (PARTNER) with Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Act, bipartisan legislation that would amend the International Organizations Immunities Act to grant ASEAN diplomatic privileges and immunities.
This legislation was first introduced in 2022 and passed the United States House of Representatives in March 2023. Bipartisan companion legislation was introduced in the Senate by Sen. Duckworth in 2024, and its provisions are included in S. 1579, introduced by Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) Ranking Member Jim Risch (R-ID) and reported out of SFRC on a bipartisan basis on June 5, 2025. The PARTNER with ASEAN Act of 2025 would amend the International Organizations Immunities Act to include a formal extension of said privileges to ASEAN, solidifying U.S.-ASEAN Relations.
“This legislation is an important step between the close and strategic partnership of the United States and Southeast Asian Nations. For decades, ASEAN has contributed to the stability and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific and has increasingly grown in its geopolitical importance. This legislation promotes U.S. leadership in the region as well as mutually beneficial dialogue with surrounding countries and regions,” said Congressman Castro.
“When the United States shows up as the partner of choice for our Indo-Pacific allies and partners, we win. ASEAN plays a central role in building strategic ties in the Indo-Pacific,” said Congresswoman Kim. “The PARTNER with ASEAN Act strengthens our alliances, promotes open markets, and affirms our commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific. I’m proud to support this bipartisan effort to deepen our partnerships with ASEAN member states and advance U.S. leadership on the global stage.”
The United States has worked closely with ASEAN for more than four decades and became the first non-member to name an ambassador to ASEAN in 2008, as well as the first non-member to establish a dedicated Mission to ASEAN in 2010.
The International Organization Immunities Act, enacted in 1945, governs how the United States extends the rights and treaties generally accorded to embassies of countries that have diplomatic relations with the United States to international organizations like ASEAN. The U.S. typically extends automatic privileges and immunities to international organizations to which it belongs (e.g., the UN, NATO), but a special act of Congress is needed to extend recognition to international organizations with which the United States is not a member (e.g., ASEAN).
