Highlights of ASEAN ministers' joint communique

Highlights of ASEAN ministers' joint communique

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Herewith highlights of the joint communique issued by Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers at the end of their annual meeting yesterday:

On implementing the decisions of the first ASEAN informal summit in Jakarta last year, the foreign ministers:

-- welcomed the admission of Burma and Laos, agreeing that a firm foundation for common action to promote regional cooperation in Southeast Asia is being accomplished

-- noted that celebrations for the 30th anniversary of ASEAN would be launched by Indonesian President Soeharto in Jakarta on August 8, with the highlight being a commemorative ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur in December with Chinese, Japanese and South Korean leaders

-- recommended that leaders of the five founding members -- Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand -- receive special citations

-- agreed to establish an ASEAN foundation through a memorandum of understanding to be signed in December.

Regarding political and security cooperation, the ASEAN ministers:

-- recognized the increasingly central role of ASEAN in maintaining regional peace and stability and underlined their commitment to work with the group's dialogue partners and other members of the ASEAN Regional Forum

-- called on nuclear weapon states to accede to the protocol of the Southeast Asia Weapon Free Zone Treaty signed in 1995 while extending the mandate of a senior officials working group to pursue consultations

-- emphasized that cooperation between ASEAN and its dialogue partners must be conducted on the basis of equality, mutual respect and mutual benefit

-- expressed hope that the ASEAN Regional Forum would move from confidence building to preventive diplomacy, welcoming increased interest by defense agencies in discussing security issues while underlining the importance of maintaining an evolutionary approach and taking decisions by consensus

Cambodia

On Cambodia, regional and international issues, the ministers:

-- agreed to continue their efforts to help Cambodia find a peaceful solution to the situation in the country, stressing ASEAN's commitment to the principle of non-interference of the internal affairs of other countries

-- recalled and reiterated their statements dated 8th and 10th July 1997 on the situation in Cambodia.

-- took note of the new position expressed by Ung Huot, the Foreign Minister of the Royal Government of Cambodia, on behalf of Second Prime Minister Hun Sen, that Cambodia welcomes ASEAN's role in helping to restore political stability in the country.

-- agreed that, upon reconfirmation of this new position, the ASEAN Ministerial delegation comprising the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Indonesia, the Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand would continue with its efforts to assist Cambodia to find a peaceful resolution of the situation in that country.

-- stressed ASEAN's commitment to the principle of non interference in the internal affairs of other countries. They noted that ASEAN had offered its good offices to Cambodia in the light of the recent unfortunate developments and in view of Cambodia's interest in joining ASEAN.

-- expressed the hope that the situation in the country would return to normalcy and that a solution could be found in the spirit of the Paris Peace Accords.

-- expressed regret that Cambodia could not be admitted into ASEAN at this stage due to the present circumstances in the country, while reaffirming that Cambodia's Observer status at the AMM remains unchanged.

-- expressed the hope that a peaceful solution would soon be found so that Cambodia would be able to join ASEAN and fulfill the vision of an ASEAN community of 10 as envisaged by the Founding Fathers of ASEAN.

-- emphasized that several issues in the South China Sea remain a source of concern and highlighted the importance of exercising restraint

-- welcomed recent developments on proposed four-party talks on the Korean peninsula, expressing hope for a permanent peace and calling on the international community to help alleviate North Korea's severe food crisis

-- welcomed the return of Hong Kong to Chinese sovereignty, expressing the hope that links with ASEAN would be maintained and continue to expand

-- viewed with deep concern the current deadlock in the Middle East peace process, demanding that Israel "take steps for the immediate and full cessation" of the construction of a new settlement south of Jerusalem

-- called upon all parties in Bosnia and Herzegovina to fully implement the Dayton Peace Agreement, deploring the fact that many indicted war criminals had still not been apprehended

-- reaffirmed that the Non-Aligned Movement remained valid and relevant under current circumstances, emphasizing its importance as a cohesive force and a major forum for consultations among developing countries

-- emphasized that additional permanent members of the UN Security Council should include developing regions of Asia, Africa and Latin America along with industrialized countries, enjoying the same rights as current permanent members with the use of veto curtailed and eventually eliminated

-- called for the start of negotiations on a phased program to eliminate nuclear weapons, emphasizing the importance of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and calling on all states to fulfill their obligations

Economic

In the area of economic cooperation, the ASEAN foreign ministers

-- noted that nearly 91 percent of all tariff lines had been included in the common effective preferential tariff scheme for the ASEAN Free Trade Area by the fifth year of implementation ahead of the 2003 deadline

-- emphasized the need to eliminate non-tariff barriers

-- reiterated their commitment to open regionalism and a rule- based multilateral trading system

-- expressed satisfaction with progress achieved in other areas such as intellectual property, industry, services, transport and communications, minerals and energy and finance and banking

-- applauded intensified cooperation in investment including progress in an action plan on foreign direct investment and intra-ASEAN investment

-- appreciated concrete steps to develop the ASEAN-Mekong Basin Development Cooperation Framework

-- strongly affirmed their commitment to the Singapore ministerial conference of the WTO and fully implementing the Uruguay Round

-- expressed concern over the emerging trend in countries outside the region to impose trade sanctions on the basis of alleged human rights violations and non-trade related issues

-- reiterated full support for Vietnam's admission to the WTO

-- attached high priority to a high-level meeting of least- developed countries in Geneva in October

-- expressed serious concerns over well coordinated efforts to stabilize ASEAN currencies, calling for further intensification of cooperation to safeguard and promote ASEAN's interests

-- expressed the hope that the proposed East Asian Economic Caucus would soon be "formally instituted" for the benefit of its members

-- lauded efforts by the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in forging meaningful liberalization undertakings and economic cooperation

-- expressed the hope that APEC's framework for economic development cooperation year could generate focussed and measured outcomes

-- reiterated their full support for Vietnam's admission to APEC

-- agreed to support an early elaboration of an Asia-Europe Cooperation Framework and expressed pleasure at the growing number of Asia-Europe initiatives

-- expressed support for a Singapore-based Asia-Europe Foundation launched in February and a proposed Asia-Europe Vision Group next year while welcoming initiatives to bring the public and private sectors together.

Cooperation

In the field of functional cooperation, the ministers:

-- called for advanced development of flagship projects in such areas as science and technology, environment, culture and information, social development and drugs and narcotics control

-- agreed to launch an ASEAN Award for individuals and organizations, to be conferred every three years at ASEAN summits starting next year

-- stressed the need to protect biological diversity and natural resources, supporting efforts to set up an ASEAN Regional Center for Biodiversity Conservation in the Philippines this year

-- urged that new approaches in science and technology cooperation be intensified including the development of indigenous capabilities and greater collaboration between the public and private sectors

-- encouraged special emphasis to be given to youth in developing information networks and studies to develop an ASEAN satellite channel.

-- welcomed the WTO agreement on core labor standards recognizing the International Labor Organization as the competent body dealing with such standards, reiterating that trade access not be linked to worker conditions or the level of implementation of labor standards

In other areas, the ASEAN ministers:

-- called on ASEAN's dialog partners to accord equal priority to trade, investment, market access, technology transfer, science and technology, culture and information, environment and social development, stressing the need for further cooperation in combating terrorism, trafficking of people, illicit drugs and arms, piracy and communicable diseases.

-- stressed the need for additional funding to finance increased development assistance in the wake of new members being admitted

-- noted meetings with China, India and Russia as new dialogue partners and the establishment of sectoral dialogue relations with Pakistan

-- called for strengthened ties with other regional organizations including the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECHO), the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) the Central American States, the Rio Group and the South Pacific Forum.