Asean discussing Lebanon, Myanmar, N.Korean issues

The Nation: 24July, 2006

KUALA LUMPUR (Malaysia) Senior Asian officials at a key regional security meeting Monday worked to put the finishing touches on a common stand on North Korea's nuclear threat and Myanmar's failure to restore democracy. 

The officials of the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) were close to drafting a joint statement to be issued by their foreign ministers at the conclusion of an annual gathering on Tuesday and Wednesday, said Sihasak Phuangketkeow, the top Thai official at the talks. 

Myanmar, North Korea and Israel's attacks on Lebanon will all be part of the final communique, he said. 

Member-state Myanmar's actions, including the continued house arrest of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, have become a growing embarrassment to Asean and have prompted pressure on the regime from the United States and Europe.  

The U.S. wants to refer Myanmar to the U.N. Security Council, while Asean has so far remained reluctant. 

The Asean ministerial meeting will be followed by the Asean Regional Forum, or ARF, on Thursday and Friday, the region's biggest meeting for security and political issues. 

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was expected to attend the ARF meeting, her first visit to the annual conference in three years. 

The ARF is an annual get-together of friends and foes, including the United States, North Korea, South Korea, India, Pakistan and Australia - a total of 25 nations and the European Union. 

In the lead up to this year's meeting, momentum has been building for Asean to host six-party talks on the North Korean nuclear impasse on the sidelines of the conference, which will include all the negotiators on the standoff - the two Koreas, United States, Japan, China and Russia. 

Talking to journalists in Washington, Rice said last week that she would be "happy to attend,'' such talks if the could be arranged. 

The talks are aimed at getting North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons programme in return for aid, trade and security guarantees, but negotiations stalled in November when Pyongyang refused to attend the discussions in protest over U.S. allegations that the regime had engaged in illicit financial activity. 

In a pointed reference to the increasing embarrassment Myanmar has become to fellow Asean members, Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said last week the regional grouping "has reached a stage where it is not possible to defend its member when that member is not making an attempt to cooperate or help itself.'' 

Myanmar's junta took power in 1988 after crushing a pro-democracy movement. 

It called elections in 1990 but decided not to hand over the government when Suu Kyi's party won. 

It claims to be working on a road map to democracy but has show no tangible results. 

The 10 ASEAN countries are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Its dialogue partners in the ARF are Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, East Timor, European Union, India, Japan, Mongolia, New Zealand, North Korea, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Russia, South Korea, United States.