ASEAN tries to resolve row

ASEAN tries to resolve row

SINGAPORE (AFP): ASEAN called on Thursday for the resumption of high-level talks with the European Union to salvage a foreign ministers' meeting hit by a dispute over Myanmar's participation.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) said the convening of the ASEAN-EU Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting, prior to the foreign ministers' meeting scheduled in Berlin later this month, could help the two regional groupings reach a compromise.

Saroj Chavanaviraj, permanent secretary of Thailand's ministry of foreign affairs, was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a senior officials' meeting between ASEAN and India held here. Thailand is the country coordinator of the present ASEAN-EU dialog.

Several EU states have vowed to boycott the meeting if army- ruled Myanmar, widely criticized for alleged human rights abuses, is represented at the foreign ministers' meeting.