Indonesian foreign minister Retno Marsudi (right) welcomes her East Timorese counterpart Adaljiza Magno during an Asean meeting in Jakarta on Feb 3. (AP pic)

JAKARTA: East Timor’s accession to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean, has received considerable attention in diplomatic circles since November, when leaders from the bloc agreed “in principle” to admit the island state as its 11th member. But experts caution that the tiny country of 1.3 million people still has much to do to meet the expectations of existing members.