NZ and Australia welcome ASEAN's move on E. Asia summit
NZ and Australia welcome ASEAN's move on E. Asia summit
Agencies, Wellington/Canberra
New Zealand may sign the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) non-aggression treaty, paving the way for it to attend the first East Asian summit in Kuala Lumpur in December, Foreign Minister Phil Goff said on Tuesday.
But New Zealand would not accede to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC) just to get an invitation to the meeting, Goff told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
He said that while New Zealand would welcome being invited to the inaugural summit, it saw accession to the treaty as "essentially symbolic", indicating its desire to maintain a friendly relationship with the 10-nation regional grouping and that it would make that decision on its merits.
Prime Minister Helen Clark discussed it with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono when he visited Wellington recently, saying later: "ASEAN nations, including Indonesia, regard the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation as a touchstone of the importance placed on the relationship.
"We see it as very significant in firming up and strengthening the relations we have with Southeast Asia generally."
Meanwhile, Australia's foreign minister on Tuesday welcomed a decision by the (ASEAN) to let Australia, New Zealand and India join the summit if they meet certain conditions.
But Foreign Minister Alexander Downer would not say if Australia will sign an ASEAN nonaggression pact - one of the conditions for participating in the inaugural East Asian summit slated for December.
Australia in the past has ruled out signing the treaty, saying it would conflict with its 54-year-old defense treaty with the United States. Just last week, Prime Minister John Howard told his Malaysian counterpart Abdullah Ahmad Badawi that Australia would not sign it.
Australia's refusal to sign the pact could hinder its bid for a place at the East Asian summit, which the foreign ministers of the 10 ASEAN nations decided Monday to hold with economic powerhouses China, Japan and South Korea.
Downer said on Tuesday that he had spoken with Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda, and the two had agreed to further discuss the treaty issue.
Downer also said Australia's refusal to sign the treaty would not automatically exclude it from the East Asian Summit.
"The trouble with diplomacy is it's never quite so black and white and simple as the way it's sometimes presented to the public by the media," Downer told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio.
"We'll be having some discussions about this, but I think that on balance it's a positive outcome and we will be looking forward to talking these issues through further," he added.
China, Japan and South Korea will attend the summit and India, New Zealand and Australia are other dialogue partners who have expressed interest in being there.
Australia and the United States have declined to sign the treaty but Goff said the New Zealand government would make its own independent decision.