JAKARTA - ASEAN foreign ministers have expressed concern over escalating tensions in the Middle East and the growing threat posed by transnational online scams, calling for stronger regional cooperation, ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim- hourn said Tuesday.

Speaking at the ASEAN Secretariat in South Jakarta, Kao said the ministers held frank discussions on geopolitical rivalry, regional security and developments in the Middle East during their annual retreat in Manila.

The ministers later issued a joint statement calling for dialogue, expressing concern over the humanitarian situation in Gaza and reaffirming the need to protect civilians in accordance with international law.

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Kao said the ministers also agreed to strengthen coordination through ASEAN-led security mechanisms to mitigate the impact of the conflict on Southeast Asia, particularly on energy and food security, supply chains and the safety of ASEAN nationals in the region.

The ministers also identified online scams and transnational organized crime as pressing regional challenges, warning that increasingly sophisticated criminal networks had fueled human trafficking, money laundering and the misuse of digital technologies across borders.

"This is an issue that is affecting all of us now, and there is a need to strengthen regional cooperation, both within ASEAN and between ASEAN and its external partners," Kao said.