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ASEAN Welcomes Development on Korean Peninsula
Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) expressed their appreciation Monday for the recent development on the Korean Peninsula, saying that it will help achieve eventual peace and stability in the region.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 33rd ASEAN Ministerial Meeting, Indonesian Foreign Minister Alwi Shihab said the Asia- Pacific countries are "heartened" by recent development in the sphere of peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.
The recent inter-Korean summit has raised hopes for the eventual achievement of long-term peace, security and stability in the region, he said.
The "new atmosphere of goodwill" on the Korean Peninsula could very well lead to early solution of security issues once deemed " intractable".
"We hope to see very soon the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) contributing positively to the work of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF)," he said.
The DPRK will attend the 7th ARF meeting to be held here on July 27.
Somsavat Lengsavad, deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Laos, also welcomed the Korean summit, saying that it has laid down the basic principles for pursuing peace, stability and peaceful reunification of the peninsula.
He also spoke highly of the ARF, noting that the forum has met a wide range of international concerns, primarily in reinforcing mutual confidence and seeking ways to address transnational crimes.
Talking about the role of the ARF, Alwi Shihab said that while the ARF remains the key forum for dialogue, consultations and cooperation in political and security concerns in the Asia-Pacific region, Indonesia believes that ASEAN should remain its primary driving force in order to ensure its continuing relevance to the security concerns of all participants.
He said that the ARF must now move its deliberations and activities substantially forward on the basis of consensus and at a pace comfortable to all participants.
The two-day AMM precedes ASEAN talks with China, Japan and South Korea and wider bilateral and regional security discussions bringing in the United States, Russia and the European Union among others.
Besides 10 ASEAN foreign ministers, John Kaputin, foreign minister of ASEAN observer Papua New Guinea and representatives of the United Nations Transitional Authority in East Timor, the Southern African Development Community, the United Nations Development Program and the Gulf Cooperation Council attended the opening ceremony
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