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The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers wound up their two-day meetings in Kuala Lumpur yesterday with a communiqué calling for ASEAN to be steadfast in keeping its solidarity and to remain focused on achieving its common mission of fostering greater regional integration. The 39th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM), with the theme of "Forging a United, Resilient and Integrated ASEAN," was participated by the foreign ministers from ASEAN's 10 member nations, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam. The foreign ministers, during their annual meetings, discussed a range of issues facing their group, which include the building of the ASEAN Community, regional security and anti-terrorist cooperation, as well as international issues. A joint communiqué issued at the end of the meeting said that ASEAN has made progress in moving toward the realization of the ASEAN Community by the year 2020, based on the three pillars, namely the ASEAN Security Community, ASEAN Economic Community and ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community. "We agreed that it was important for ASEAN to strengthen our integration efforts for all three pillars of the ASEAN Community," the communiqué said. The foreign ministers exchanged views during the meeting on how to bring forward the realization of the ASEAN Community from 2020 to 2015 and the possible ways of achieving this objective. "We reiterated the importance of maintaining ASEAN centrality in the context of ASEAN related regional architectures to support the attainment of the objectives of the establishment of the ASEAN Community," the communiqué said. The foreign ministers also underlined the need to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of ASEAN for improved coordination in its endeavors to achieve the goals and objectives of the ASEAN Community. In order to facilitate intra ASEAN travel and also to boost the tourism sector, people-to-people linkages and economic development among ASEAN member countries, the ASEAN foreign ministers signed at the end of their meeting a Framework Agreement on Visa Exemption. The agreement exempts citizens of ASEAN member countries from visa requirements for a social visit of up to 14 days from the date of entry. On cooperation with its dialogue partners, the ASEAN foreign ministers expressed their commitment to intensifying cooperation in various fields with dialogue partners for the mutual benefit of the peoples and region. They expressed satisfaction with the progress achieved in ASEAN's relations with the Dialogue Partners, namely, Australia, Canada, China, the EU, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia, the US, the UN Development Program (UNDP) and the increasing interest of Sectoral Dialogue Partner Pakistan to engage more with ASEAN. The foreign ministers underscored the need to maintain ASEAN centrality and unity in all dialogue and cooperation processes initiated by ASEAN. They reaffirmed the importance of ASEAN acting and being recognized as the driving force in all facets of the regional grouping's relations with its Dialogue Partners and other external parties as well as ASEAN playing a central role in the evolving regional architectures. The ministers agreed that the ASEAN Plus Three (10+3) process would remain as the main vehicle with ASEAN as the driving force for East Asian community building. The year 2007 will mark the 10th anniversary of the ASEAN Plus Three cooperation. On international issues, the ASEAN foreign ministers issued a statement condemning all acts of terror, violence and destruction in the Middle East. "We are gravely concerned over the deteriorating situation and the escalation of violence in the Middle East, particularly the disproportionate, indiscriminate and excessive use of force by Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory and in Lebanon, triggered by the capture of two Israeli soldiers," the statement said. The ministers called for an immediate ceasefire and urged the international community and the UN Security Council to get all parties in the conflict to adhere to the ceasefire under UN supervision with the participation of countries that are able to do so. Meanwhile, the ASEAN foreign ministers reiterated strong condemnation against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and emphasized the need to address the root causes of terrorism. The foreign ministers urged the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime (AMMTC) to heighten cooperation in these areas including other relevant ASEAN bodies and ASEAN Dialogue Partners. They expressed hope that the Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters would be ratified by all ASEAN Member Countries, so as to improve the effectiveness of cooperation in combating transnational crime and terrorism through mutual legal assistance in criminal matters. The ASEAN foreign ministers also issued a statement calling for resumption of six-party talks to move forward in achieving a peaceful resolution of the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue. "We reaffirm our support for the principles of the joint statement on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula reached on September 19, 2005 at the six-party talks in Beijing. We also stress the importance of the observance and implementation of the joint statement," the ministers said in the statement. The six-party talks, which involve China, the US, Russia, Japan, South and North Korea, are a series of meetings aimed at finding a peaceful resolution to the Korean nuclear issue. According to the joint communiqué, the Philippines was elected as the Incoming Chair of the 40th ASEAN Standing Committee and Singapore as the Vice Chair. The 40th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting/Post Ministerial Conferences/14th ASEAN Regional Forum will be held on July 30 to August 2, 2007 in the Philippines. (Xinhua News Agency July 26, 2006)
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