Japan and Pakistan set to sign TAC
The Jakarta Post, The Jakarta
Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi and his Pakistani counterpart Kurshid M. Kasuri are scheduled to sign the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC) in Southeast Asia during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum (ARF) on Friday.
Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi disappointed ASEAN with his decision to delay signing the TAC during ASEAN's informal summit with its dialog partners from China, Japan and South Korea in Bali last October. China and India did sign the treaty during the informal summit.
Two months later in Tokyo, while hosting a commemorative meeting with ASEAN leaders, Japan was again expected to sign the treaty. However, citing constitutional concerns, Japan again delayed its signing. At the time, Koizumi said the government had to receive prior approval from the Diet before signing any agreements with a foreign country.
"That is exactly the reason the foreign minister is now able to sign the document, because the Diet about two weeks ago passed a bill approving the treaty and the government now is in a position to sign and ratify it," Japan's foreign ministry spokesman Hatsuhisa Takashima told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.
Pakistan is also scheduled to sign the TAC on Friday, when it will also formally join ARF as its 24th member.
"Our Foreign Minister Kurshid M. Kasuri, who is scheduled to arrive in Jakarta on Thursday evening, will sign the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation on Friday," Moazzam Shah, the deputy head of the mission at the Pakistan Embassy in Jakarta, told the Post on Thursday.
Pakistan's bid to join ARF last year was foiled by traditional rival India, a member of ARF and a signatory to the TAC, during the ARF meeting in Phnom Penh.
In blocking the bid, India said it was concerned that Pakistan might raise the controversial issue of Kashmir at the forum.
But ARF, under the leadership of Indonesia, which has cordial ties with both India and Pakistan, has convinced New Delhi to support Pakistan's entry into the security forum.
"The TAC, as stipulated in the Second Bali Concord, serves as the code of conduct governing relations between states and as an instrument for the promotion of peace, stability and cooperation in the region. Thus, a commitment to the TAC on the part of these powers should easily translate into support for an initiative so vital to the security, stability and prosperity of the ASEAN region," Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda said on Monday while closing the 37th ASEAN Standing Committee meeting in Jakarta.