What leaders say about new strategic partnership

Many of the Asian and African leaders attending the two-day summit that opened in Jakarta on Friday have signed Asian-African Strategic Partnership (NAASP). The to recognize the relevance of the solidarity, friendship and cooperation initiated by the Asian and African leaders who attended the historic 1955 conference in Bandung. The following are comments by some of the leaders at the summit's opening.

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, President of Indonesia:

I believe that in 2005, Asia-Africa can be, and must be, more than a "moral force". Much more. Through this strategic partnership, Asia-Africa can be transformed, from no longer being just a geographical expression, but as a true geopolitical and geo-economic reality.

Thabo Mbeki, President of South Africa:

We have made significant strides towards giving real meaning to the critical objective of South-South cooperation, the cooperation visualized by the freedom fighters who met in Bandung in 1955, which we seek radically to expand through the establishment of the new Asian-African strategic partnership. We have built some of the institutional mechanisms we need to enable us to act together to achieve our common goals. These include the African Union, its development program NEPAD, ASEAN and others.

Hu Jintao, President of China:

We must actively promote and improve North-South relations on the basis of equality and mutual benefit, facilitating North- South dialog and cooperation, safeguarding and expanding the legitimate rights and interests of developing countries, achieving a win-win result through reciprocity and complementarity, and contributing to human progress by advancing the cause of world peace, stability and prosperity.

Junichiro Koizumi, Prime Minister of Japan:

Japan places great emphasis on the strengthening of partnerships in the areas of poverty reduction and development. From this point of view, Japan will ensure a credible and sufficient level of Overseas Development Assistance (ODA). In addition, Japan will be seeking concrete actions to further expand market access to products from the least developed countries in order to support their self-reliance.

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia, Chairman of the Organization of Islamic Conference:

Asia and Africa must take the lead in strengthening ties with civil society, which can be a force and factor for national development, as well as in our quest for a just, democratic and progressive world. Asia and Africa must also work closely to combat negative perceptions about Asian and Africa depicted by the international media. We must ensure that good governance prevails at the national levels in our respective countries.

Olusegun Obasanjo, President of Nigeria and Chairman of the African Union:

The Asian African partnership should strengthen our economic interaction with the wider world such that the rules of the game should not continue to be to our disadvantage but rather equitable and fair. We should, therefore, actively participate in strengthening our activities in international organizations by coordinating our strategies and by according each other mutually beneficial support in pursuit of our common interests.

Thaksin Shinawatra, Prime Minister of Thailand:

To create a workable partnership at the intercontinental level, may I suggest that the Asia Cooperation Dialog and the African Union consider initiating a mechanism that could involve some pioneer members on both sides to work out a number of functional cooperation projects that feel comfortable to lead off. Others may join whenever they are ready at their own convenience.

Hamid Karzai, President of Afghanistan

We must build a future where quality education and health care are not only privileges of the wealthy but the rights of all; where our faiths rightly guide us to serve humanity, not to harm it and where a concern for collective well-being has replaced narrow national interests.

Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister of Singapore

For Africa, it can latch onto Asia's growth by strengthening trade and business linkages. For Asia, this is the missing piece from our network of linkages with North American, the European Union and Latin America. The new Asian-African strategic partnership must develop concrete initiatives and projects that will broaden our understanding of each other's needs and aspirations, strengths and capabilities, and enhance people-to- people exchanges. Singapore supports the new Asian-African strategic partnership.