MANILA, Philippines - Foreign ministers from member-states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have agreed to extend the implementation of the five-year-old treaty that ensures the region will be free of nuclear weapons.

Top ASEAN diplomats on Friday extended the Treaty of Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ)’s Plan of Action (POA) until 2022.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano chaired the meeting of the SEANWFZ Commission.

During his intervention, Cayetano underscored the Philippines’ support for full implementation of the SEANWFZ Treaty, consistent with the goal of preserving the region as a nuclear weapon-free zone and ensuring the safety of the peoples of Southeast Asia.

The SEANWFZ Commission is composed of foreign ministers of the ASEAN with the task of overseeing the implementation of the SEANWFZ Treaty.

The five-year POA of the SEANWFZ Treaty, which was adopted in 2013, will expire this year.

The SEANWFZ is the ASEAN’s most important contribution to the global aspiration of a nuclear weapons-free world.

On Saturday, foreign ministers from the ASEAN called on North Korea to stop its nuclear program to ensure peace and stability in the region and in the world.

In a statement, the foreign ministers expressed grave concerns over the escalation of tension in the Korean Peninsula, including Pyongyang’s recent missile testing.

Twenty-seven foreign ministers, including those of Russia, Japan, South Korea, the United States, China and North Korea, will meet today for the annual ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) to discuss Asian security issues.

The US had asked the ARF to suspend North Korea from the security forum as part of a broader effort to isolate Pyongyang diplomatically and force it to end its missile tests.