Ministers to fix ASEAN's image

Ministers to fix ASEAN's image

MANILA (AFP): Southeast Asian foreign ministers are to draw up a vision of a "united and solid" ASEAN during their meeting in Singapore later this month, a senior Philippine diplomat said on Monday.

The move follows attacks on the 32-year-old organization's performance in the face of serious challenges such as the Asian financial crisis and the dispute over South China Sea territories, where four ASEAN members are rival claimants.

There has been concern that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations "is being perceived as not in the same position as before", the source said.

The diplomat cited an observation by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) that ASEAN's policy of dialog and non-interference in other members' political affairs was hampering the group.

Such a policy has also left ASEAN less able to act as a check on the influence of regional powers such as China, the source said.