ASEAN, Japan agree to help repair Indochinese economies

ASEAN, Japan agree to help repair Indochinese economies

CHIANG MAI, Thailand (AFP): The ASEAN nations and Japan agreed
here Saturday to form a joint committee that will seek ways to
help repair the war-shattered economies of Cambodia, Laos and
Vietnam.

The two sides said in a statement that the working group on
Economic Cooperation in Indochina would have two people from each
member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and
Japan.

It would "work on possible programs to Cambodia, Laos and
Vietnam," said the statement issued in this northern Thai city
after the third meeting between Japan's trade minister and
economic ministers from ASEAN members Brunei, Indonesia,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

Thai Deputy Prime Minister Supachai Panitchpakdi told
reporters that while they wanted to concentrate first on helping
the three Indochina countries, the program would assist Myanmar
later on.

Ryutaro Hashimoto, Japan's minister of international trade and
industry (MITI), commended ASEAN for speeding up and expanding
its tariff reduction program, while the ASEAN ministers urged
Japan to open its market further.

The ASEAN ministers "stressed the importance of improved
access to the Japanese market especially for manufactured goods,
and the need to address the growing trade deficit with Japan,
especially in the context of trade liberalization and
deregulation."

Hashimoto said Japan was ready to actively use its foreign
investment insurance program to promote Japanese investment in
the ASEAN countries and elsewhere, and would help set up such
programs in the ASEAN nations by extending re-insurance coverage
and providing training.

Asked about the ongoing U.S.-Japan trade talks and
Washington's threat of sanctions if an agreement is not reached
by Sept. 30, Hashimoto would say only that "we are making a
maximum effort to reach an agreement as soon as we can."

He refused to say what Japan would do if the United States
imposed sanctions or comment on what effect any sanctions might
have. But he emphasized that Japan would not compromise its basic
principles.

APEC

Hashimoto also defended the fledgling Asia Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) forum over which the ASEAN ministers appear
badly divided.

APEC, which held its first summit last year in Seattle, groups
the ASEAN nations with Australia, Canada, China, Hong Kong,
Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, South Korea, Taiwan
and the United States.

Chile is to formally join the group in November.

Hashimoto said the group's summit this November in Indonesia
"is an important opportunity for determining a new direction for
APEC," which "needs to vigorously pursue its activities."

Asked how Japan views the second report by APEC's advisory
Eminent Persons Group (EPG) calling for freer trade within the
region, Hashimoto said "basically we are able to accept the EPG
report."

ASEAN's economic ministers failed to agree on a common stand
on APEC at their meeting here this week and called for abolishing
the EPG.

Malaysia in particular is wary of a strengthened APEC and is
pushing for a smaller East Asian Economic Caucus that would
exclude the United States.