US, Asean forge key commitments to revive ties

NEW YORK – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the US have come up with key commitments expected to revive the superpower’s presence and interest over the strategic region southeast of China.

This developed during the 2nd Asean-US Summit among the 10 leaders of the region and the only remaining superpower.

The summit occurred on the sidelines of the 65th UN General Assembly and meetings on the Millenium Development Goals.

President Benigno Aquino III, representing the Philippines, acted as the coordinator of the summit and was able to shake hands and share a few words with US President Barrack Obama in the process.

No bilateral meeting was held between Aquino and Obama despite a standing invitation for the new Philippine President to meet his American counterpart.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo, who attended the meeting with President Aquino, said the second meeting among the leaders of Asean and the US was a testimony to the US’ firm commitment to become an active partner of Asean in the years to come.

The document indicating a call for closer relations between the regional group and the US comes in the wake of a Chinese statement against the US position that the territorial dispute in the South China Sea be settled through diplomacy.

China scored the US position, aired a few months ago by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, for being an interference in regional affairs.

China and some Southeast Asian states, including the Philippines, dispute the rightful ownership of the territories in the South China Sea. The Philippines is claiming the ownership of the Spratly Islands kilometers off Palawan.

Aquino during his visit to the US to lure investors to the Philippines said he agreed with Clinton’s call for a diplomatic resolution to the dispute citing the importance of the sea routes if a conflict starts in the region.

The Philippine mission to the United Nations reported that the Asean-US Joint Statement, adopted during the summit, lauded the establishment of an eminent persons group that will recommend specific steps towards an enhanced partnership.

The two sides also agreed to strengthen cooperation in addressing human rights; trade and investment; energy efficiency; agriculture; educational, cultural and people-to-people exchanges; interfaith dialogue; science and technology; disaster risk management and emergency response; health and pandemic diseases; environment; biodiversity conservation; climate change; combating illicit trafficking in persons, arms and drugs; and other forms of transnational crimes.

The summit also tasked Asean and US officials to achieve the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals, enhanced regional integration, and the realization of an Asean Community by 2015.

The millennium goals are a set of objectives that should be done by 2015. They include among others the alleviation of poverty and hunger and better health and education services.

The Asean and the US leaders also stressed their countries’ commitment to prevent the use and spread of weapons of mass destruction and congratulated the Philippines for its able and effective presidency of the May 2010 Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

“Following extensive discussions between our hardworking senior officials, I am glad that there is agreement that this 2nd ASEAN-US Leaders Meeting is to herald a new era of revitalized ASEAN-US relations,” President Aquino said in his statement.

The Philippine mission to the UN said President Aquino played an active role in the Asean-US Leaders Meeting.

The meeting was opened and co-chaired by Vietnamese President Nguyen and President Obama. President Aquino, as country coordinator, spoke after the two co-chairs to lead off the two-hour dialogue, the mission said in a news release.

Prior to the adoption of the Joint Statement by the Leaders of Asean and the US, Senior Officials from their countries held several rounds of discussions. The Philippines took a lead in these negotiations as the coordinator between Asean and the US.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Erlinda Basilio headed the Philippine negotiating team Assistant Secretary for ASEAN Affairs Victoria Bataclan and Assistant Secretary for American Affairs Patricia Paez as her members.

“This is a moment of renewal and revitalization, of words matching deeds. The Philippines is committed to broadening the horizons and expanding the frontiers of our relationship – a relationship that we see as a pillar of the continued stability and prosperity of our region. A relationship that holds the promise of an even better future for all our peoples,” President Aquino added.

The Philippine mission to the UN said the first Asean-US Leaders Meeting was held in Singapore in November 2009 where the parties agreed to work closely to address regional security, environmental, as well as developmental issues. –Norman Bordadora, Philippine Daily Inquirer