ARF opens with informal dinner
JAKARTA (JP): The ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) began yesterday evening with an informal working dinner attended by the participating foreign ministers.
They were seated together at an elongated table in alphabetical order with most donning batik shirts. Others, such as Ireland's Dick Spring and U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher, wore suits to the dinner hosted by Indonesia's Ali Alatas.
Although the mood was relaxed and casual yesterday, officials said that the talking would get tougher at today's one-day meeting.
The ARF is a multilateral political and security consultative forum established by the seven members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) -- Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Other ARF participants include Cambodia, Laos, Papua New Guinea and Myanmar as ASEAN observers, along with dialog partners Australia, Canada, China, India, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Russia, the United States and the European Union.
India and Myanmar will be participating for the first time having had their status recently elevated.
The ARF is designed as a free-wheeling forum for discussion but a number of important issues in the region are expected to be discussed.
One in particular is the issue of Myanmar. Several of ASEAN's dialog partners met yesterday with Myanmarese Foreign Minister U Ohn Gyaw.
Irish Foreign Minister Dick Spring, after his meeting with Ohn Gyaw, said he had expressed the European Union's concern over the domestic situation in Myanmar and also discussed the importance of further meetings with Yangon.
Spring is here as chairman of the council of ministers of the European Union.
Australia's Alexander Downer said he expressed Canberra's concern to Ohn Gyaw, but would not say whether he would officially take up the issue at the meeting today.
When asked about Myanmar's participation in the ARF, Downer said "it would be a mistake to keep people out of the ARF on the grounds of their substantial political differences between us and them."
Another topic which is expected to be raised by ASEAN members themselves is the sea-baselines in the South China Sea recently legislated by Beijing.
ASEAN states have expressed their concern about the baselines and maintained that they have no basis since China is a continental, not archipelagic, state.
The Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Shen Guofang, told journalists yesterday that experts in Beijing had carried out extensive studies before drawing the baselines.
"Of course there are some countries that hold different views on this, (but) we are willing to exchange views with them," he said.
When pressed by journalists on whether he thought China was an archipelagic state, Guofang replied: "China has a very complicated sea bank and characteristics...That's why we consider the characteristics and complicated factors, that why we published our baseline."
The issue was also discussed when Alatas held private talks with his Chinese counterpart Qian Qichen yesterday afternoon.
According to Guofang there is no dispute between Indonesia and China on the issue. The Chinese spokesperson did not elaborate, and said that it was only a big issue in the press.
ASEAN states are also expected to press the issue of the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapons Free Zone (SEANWFZ) Treaty which the United States has continued to reject.
The Third ARF will be held this morning at the Jakarta Convention Center. Ministers will be seated in rattan chairs arranged in a circle facing each other.
Other officials will be gathered in a separate room where they will monitor the discussions a live television linkup.
After lunch the ARF ministers will attend an audience with President Soeharto at the State Palace after which they will return to finish their morning discussions. (pwn/mds)
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