Asia gaining an international voice

Frank-Juergen Richter and Pamela Mar, The Straits Times, Asia News Network, Singapore

We have just come out of three big international summits of elites from business and government. The APEC meeting in Shanghai, the World Economic Forum East Asia Economic Summit in Hong Kong and the World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial meetings in Doha have approached common issues of business, economy, geopolitics each with their own twist.

The results of the meetings are signposts, enabling observers to muse on Asia's future.

Asia's geopolitical voice has achieved a significant level of coherence. Whether one calls this political maturity or converging of interests, the region is starting to realize a sophistication of international voice.

The biggest country, China, no longer allows domestic policy to be the primary shaper of international stance, as evidenced by Jiang Zemin's support for the global anti-terrorism platform at the APEC Summit.

In addition, China's realization of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization with the republics of Central Asia shows a careful crafting of multilateral relations which further supports the proposition of a proactive China in the international arena. China has also gained leverage vis-a-vis its most difficult relation, Japan.

Smaller countries are also speaking forcefully, lest the world begins to think that the only countries in Asia that matter are China and Japan.

Philippine President Gloria Arroyo made clear that the Philippines clearly sees links between global conflict and the fight at home against Muslim separatists. Her renewed efforts in this area indicate that she will likely continue the Philippine's strong presence at the global level.

Although it is too early to predict a joint thrust of foreign policy, the three summits have shown a development towards an Asian voice that is balanced and distinct.

At the same time, this is markedly different from the past in that it is in no way carved from the superficial concept of "Asian values" but, instead, grounded in the need to tackle immediate needs and challenges.

A prediction we offer is that Asia is maturing in its discussion of free trade and is thus well-positioned to bolster positive intra-regional trade. The "threat" of China has become the catalyst giving the region enough clarity and determination to realize the vision for an Asian free-trade area.

The idea of a free-trade area with China as its economic core is an acceptable and even optimistic proposition for Southeast Asia. The attention shown to China, China's great efforts to show solidarity and the will to cooperate with its East Asian neighbors at APEC and the East Asia Economic Summit demonstrates that both sides accept the other as an indispensable partner.

At the same time, Asian countries have defined the bounds of their aligned interests, most forcefully on the issue of monetary cooperation.

At the East Asia Economic Summit, the region's major central banks agreed that while monetary cooperation was an interesting proposition, the region does not need nor would it benefit from a European Union-style economic grouping nor a common currency. But they made it clear that they would continue to consult, formally and informally, in addressing currency and financial-market issues.

Added to the achievements of the government-driven APEC and WTO meetings, the East Asia Economic Summit churned out direct action potential for businesses.

In tackling the economic recession and in responding to their governments' policies, Asian businesses are beginning to behave more and more like "Western" multinationals. Asia's industry leaders have increasingly moved production overseas, hired and fired workers with the same bottom-line driven intensity as Western MNCs, used capital markets to achieve financing, and pursued mergers and acquisitions in response to business needs rather than political allegiances.

Moreover, they have defined their joint interests and are undertaking discussion on these issues with their political leaders. They are insisting, as intensely as any Western lobbyist, on being heard. Certainly, Indian Minister Murosoli Maran's vociferous defense of the trading rights of developing countries testifies to this convergence of government policy and business constituencies at home.

This is not to say that Asia will move towards a U.S.-style lobbying business but merely that Asia's business leaders are learning how to jointly define, defend and assert their collective interests with their political leaders.

Addressing one's business interests with government is nothing new, but the fact that Asia is doing so at the global level is a relatively new phenomenon.

If Asia fights the recession with the same skill it exhibited in the three meetings, it will emerge a stronger and more matured player on the world stage.