ASEM summit opens in Hanoi

ASEM summit opens in Hanoi

Tini Tran, Associated Press/Hanoi

An Asia-Europe summit opened on Friday overshadowed by the European Union's threat to slap fresh sanctions on one of the grouping's newest Asian members -- military-ruled Myanmar -- if it fails to release its high-profile dissident Aung San Suu Kyi.

During opening ceremonies at Vietnam's National Assembly chambers, several European leaders cited the difficulties in preparing this year's meeting -- nearly scuttled over Myanmar, also known as Burma, whose membership was championed by fellow Asian nations. But the leaders expressed optimism that the summit could help resolve that and other regional issues.

The informal grouping known as the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) on Thursday welcomed Myanmar, along with two other Asian and 10 European nations as new members to the forum, created for the two continents to discuss trade, security and political concerns.

"We have already demonstrated our ability to approach and tackle difficult questions such as the enlargement of ASEM, including human rights and recent developments in Burma/Myanmar," said Romano Prodi, president of the European Commission.

"We will discuss this important issue at this summit, and I hope this will translate into a shared commitment to work toward positive change in that country."

Also on the agenda were nuclear tensions on the Korean peninsula, terrorism and economic cooperation.

The European Union (EU), which has spoken out strongly about rights violations by Myanmar's government, dropped its objections last month to allowing the country to attend the summit.

But the EU imposed a Friday deadline -- coinciding with the meeting's start -- for the country's military rulers to release Suu Kyi, the pro-democracy leader and Nobel Peace laureate.

During the first closed session of the summit, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder took Myanmar to task.

"We should stay in dialogue about human rights in our countries and speak to the universal standards," he said in remarks released afterward. "In this respect, we expect from Myanmar, as a new member of ASEM, further progress."

There was no immediate word response from Myanmar.

On Thursday, Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot, whose country holds the EU Presidency, said the European nations would meet on Monday to formally approve new sanctions, as it grew increasingly unlikely that Myanmar would agree to the EU conditions.

The proposed sanctions include extending a visa ban on Myanmar military authorities and their families, barring EU companies from providing loans and other financing to Myanmar state-owned companies, and other measures.

This year's addition of 13 new nations to the two-day summit is seen as a rejuvenation of the 25-member organization, which already includes Asian economic powerhouses such as China, Japan and South Korea and European stalwarts including France and Germany. The European Commission is also a member.

The forum, begun in 1996, was meant to be counter U.S. influence in both Asia and Europe. This year, an undercurrent of negative sentiment toward increasingly unilateral U.S. policy was evident.

Both Asian and European leaders emphasized the role of the United Nations and a need for more effective multilateralism. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi called for expansion of cooperation under ASEM.

"We should further promote the revitalization of cooperation within ASEM. We must start taking concrete measures to achieve closer economic partnership, as well as to cope with the issue of cultural diversity in the era of globalization," Koizumi said.

Delegates said they didn't expect the summit to be dominated only by the Myanmar controversy.

During the meeting, South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun was expected to seek support for his country's attempts to find a peaceful resolution to the North Korea nuclear weapons issue.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao sought a lifting of a 15-year arms ban from the EU and has already secured support from French President Jacques Chirac despite objections from other EU members and the United States.

Chirac told China's Xinhua news agency prior to the Hanoi summit that China has changed since the ban was enacted in 1989 after the government crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

Chirac was expected to arrive in China for a visit on Friday.

Other EU countries, led by the Netherlands and Sweden, have so far blocked efforts to lift the ban, citing continuing human rights concerns. The United States is lobbying against lifting the ban out of fears it will offset the military balance in east Asia and due to China's poor human rights record.

In addition, both Germany and Japan were expected to lobby for permanent seats on the UN Security Council. Only the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China currently have permanent Security Council seats and wield veto power, giving them effective say over the body's agenda.