Howard arrives at summit amid pressure to sign pact
Howard arrives at summit amid pressure to sign pact
Australian Prime Minister John Howard arrived in Laos on Monday
for a summit of Southeast Asian nations where he is expected to
face pressure over his refusal to sign a regional non-aggression
pact.
Howard, whose stated policy of pre-emptive strikes to avert
terrorist attacks has raised concerns in the region, joined New
Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark for their first summit with
the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The two are due to ink a pact for a historic free trade pact
with the region. Negotiations are scheduled to run for two years
after which Australia and New Zealand would then be formally
linked with the ASEAN trade bloc during the 10 years to 2017.
But Canberra's insistence it would not sign ASEAN's Treaty of
Amity and Cooperation (TAC) has created a gathering row.
The region's foreign ministers over the weekend urged
Australia to sign the pact as a show of good faith to dispel
concerns about its threats to carry out pre-emptive strikes on
foreign terror bases.
"We think that it's high time that Australia give it serious
consideration," Thai foreign ministry spokesman Sihasak
Phuangketkeow told reporters here as the ASEAN summit got
underway on Monday.
He said there was little reason for Australia to shy away from
the pact, noting that seven countries including ASEAN's key
dialogue partners China, Japan and India have signed on to the
treaty. South Korea signed it on Saturday and Russia is due to
join on Tuesday.
Sihasak however, said the issue was unlikely to evolve into a
bargaining chip for Australia's membership in an East Asian trade
block being mapped out by ASEAN.
Howard said the TAC was not a treaty that Australia would
normally sign because doing so would prevent Canberra from
criticizing other member countries over issues such as human
rights.
The pact calls for signatories to commit to "non-interference
in the internal affairs of one another", a "renunciation of the
threat or use of force" and the settlement of disputes by
"peaceful means".
ASEAN officials have warned Australia's refusal would result
in an imbalance in overall relations with ASEAN.
Earlier Monday, Howard insisted the TAC issue remained
separate from the trade deal.
"They are two separate issues so we shouldn't confuse the two
and that has been made very clear," he said in Sydney. "In the
end it is the substance of the relationships we have with
individual countries that really matters." -- AFP