Australia, NZ to attend Laos summit

Australia, NZ to attend Laos summit

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta

Australia and New Zealand are moving closer to become permanent
dialog partners of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) annual leaders' summit along with Japan, China and South
Korea, a senior ASEAN official disclosed.

ASEAN Secretary-General Ong Keng Yong said ASEAN leaders
decided to invite the two countries to attend the next summit in
Laos this year, to celebrate Australia's 30th anniversary of ties
with ASEAN. New Zealand will also have had links with ASEAN for
the same length of time next year.

"There is a consensus in ASEAN to invite the prime ministers
of Australia and New Zealand to attend the 10th ASEAN Summit in
Vientiane," Ong told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of the
ASEAN Ministerial Meeting this week in Jakarta.

Laos, as the next chair of ASEAN, will host the 10th ASEAN
summit in Vientiane from Nov. 29 to Nov. 30, 2004.

When asked whether it will be a permanent arrangement like the
ASEAN plus China, Japan and South Korea Summit, or the ASEAN and
India summit meeting, Ong replied,"It's up to the leaders of
ASEAN to decide the summit meeting with Australia and New
Zealand, whether it will be one time only or also next time," he
said.

Indonesia is insisting that the two countries only be invited
for the commemorative summit.

"The planned summit would only be commemorative in nature and
it would not be a regular meeting," Indonesian foreign ministry
spokesman Marty A. Natalegawa said.

Australia and New Zealand -- close neighbors of the Southeast
Asian region -- have very close relations, both politically and
economically, with ASEAN member countries.

Australia, which experienced the most fatalities compared to
other foreign countries in the Bali blasts in 2002, signed a
counter-terrorism treaty on Thursday with ASEAN.

ASEAN, a market of 500 million people, wants to boost its
integration with the lucrative Australian and New Zealand
markets, known as the Closer Economic Region (CER).

Australia and New Zealand have been making efforts to sign a
free trade agreement (FTA) with ASEAN.