Forum provides measure of trust

Ten years ago, members of the Association of South east Asian Nations set up a subsidiary called the ASEAN Regional Forum.

ARF, as it has unfortunately come to be known, has the vague mission of hosting meetings of the countries involved in the security of the ASEAN region. There was no grand vision back in 1994, but the ARF has become one of the most important ASEAN- sponsored groups.

ASEAN itself is designed to hold together 10 diverse nations by non-interference in one another's business. ARF holds the feet of each member to the fire in an attempt to create trust and peace through openness.

Ministers of its 24 member countries are preparing for the anniversary meeting next month in Indonesia with an important new member and an enlarged responsibility.

The outgoing government in India correctly dropped its unwarranted objection to membership by Pakistan.

Pakistan is a frontline nation in the war on terrorism, and brings much needed experience and information to the Jakarta meetings in late June.

The other troubling dispute near the top of the ARF agenda is North Korea. Thailand was instrumental in convincing Pyongyang to join the ARF at the Bangkok meeting in 2000.

Even getting Pyongyang to send the foreign minister to ARF meetings has been a trial. Indonesia hopes to convince Paek Nam- sun to show up next month.

The advantages for North Korea seem obvious. Yet the Kim Jong- il dictatorship seems oblivious to the desire of all Asia-Pacific countries to welcome a peaceful North Korea into their midst.

The ARF is not just another excuse for Asia-Pacific leaders to get together and have pictures taken for the TV news and front pages back home. The forum has an agenda, which is to promote peace and cooperation through open discussion and -- as the diplomats put it -- "frank" exchanges.

There is a time for consensus, but not at ARF meetings. Forum members must confront the tough issues head-on, even at the cost of public disagreement. -- Bangkok Post