ASEAN Summit
The ASEAN Summit is a biannual meeting held by the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in relation to economic, political, security, and socio-cultural development of Southeast Asian countries. In addition, it serves as a prominent regional and international conference, with world leaders attending its related summits and meetings to discuss various problems and global issues, strengthening co-operation, and making decisions. The summit has been praised by world leaders for its success and ability to produce results on a global level.
The league of ASEAN is currently connected with other countries who aim to participate on the missions and visions of the league. The league conducts annual meetings with other countries in an organisation collectively known as the ASEAN dialogue partners. ASEAN +3 adds China, Japan, and South Korea.
The formal summits are held in three days. The usual itinerary are as follows:
- ASEAN leaders hold an internal organisation meeting.
- ASEAN leaders hold a conference together with foreign ministers of the ASEAN Regional Forum.
- Leaders of three ASEAN Dialogue Partners, namely China, Japan, and South Korea, hold a meeting with the ASEAN leaders.
- And a separate meeting is set for leaders of two ASEAN Dialogue Partners, namely Australia and New Zealand.
History
The 2nd ASEAN summit held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in August 1977 was the occasion for the first summit meeting between Japan and ASEAN. Japan expressed its intention to promote co-operation with ASEAN.
At the 9th ASEAN Summit, a meeting in October 2003 in Bali, Indonesia, the leaders of the member states signed a declaration known as the Bali Concord II in which they agreed to pursue closer economic integration by 2020.
According to the declaration, "an ASEAN Community" would be set upon three pillars, "namely political and security cooperation, economic cooperation, and socio-cultural cooperation; For the purpose of ensuring durable peace, stability and shared prosperity in the region." The plan envisaged a region with a population of 500 million and annual trade of US$720 billion. Also, a free trade area would be established in the region by 2020. ASEAN's leaders also discussed setting up a security community alongside the economic one, though without any formal military alliance.
During the same meeting, China and ASEAN also agreed to work faster toward a mutual trade agreement which would create the world's most populous market, with 1.7 billion consumers. Japan also signed an agreement pledging to reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers with ASEAN members.
At the 11th ASEAN summit in December 2005 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, several main issues were discussed:
- the spread of bird flu
- the South Thailand insurgency
- democracy in Myanmar
- crude oil prices fluctuation and poverty
- investment and trade
- ASEAN Charter
The 12th ASEAN Summit was originally set to be hosted in Cebu in the Philippines in December 2006. However, on 8 December, organisers decided to move the summit schedule to January 2007 due to Typhoon Seniang hitting the area. Metro Cebu jointly hosted various events of the summit. The actual conference was held at the Cebu International Convention Centre in Mandaue, while the Shangri-La Mactan Island Resort & Spa in Lapu-Lapu City provided accommodations for delegates and venues for smaller meetings. At the summit, the member countries of ASEAN signed five agreements pertaining to continuing integration of ASEAN and enhancing political, economic, and social co-operation in the region:
- Cebu Declaration Towards a Caring and Sharing Community
- Cebu Declaration on the Blueprint for the ASEAN Charter
- Cebu Declaration on the Acceleration of the Establishment of an ASEAN Community by 2015
- ASEAN Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers
- ASEAN Convention on Counter Terrorism
- ASEAN Mutual Recognition Agreement on Architectural Services
- ASEAN Framework Arrangement for the Mutual Recognition of Surveying Qualifications
- Protocol to Implement the Sixth Package of Commitments under the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services
- Agreements on trade and areas of co-operation with ASEAN Dialogue Partners
The 28th and 29th ASEAN Summits were held in September 2016 in Vientiane, Laos. The year 2016 also marked the start off of the implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025. Apart from the two main summits, other sideline summits under the umbrella of ASEAN were also held. There were nine Summits with ASEAN's Dialogue Partners under the ASEAN Plus One, ASEAN Plus Three, and East Asia Summit co-operation frameworks. Also, under the sub-regional co-operation framework, the Mekong-Japan Summit was held. This occasion also provided a platform for ASEAN Leaders to meet with Representatives of ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly, Representatives of ASEAN Youth, and ASEAN Business Advisory Council. The main theme discussed at the summits was regarding the further commitment for the implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and the three community Blueprints. ASEAN Leaders also signed the ASEAN Declaration on One ASEAN, One Response: ASEAN Responding to Disasters as One in the Region and Outside the Region.
South China Sea issues also came atop among important agenda at the summit. At the summit, the Philippines and Japan expressed serious concerns over China's maritime territorial claims and building of artificial islands in the South China Sea. Japan's Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, called for peaceful settlement of dispute between China and the Philippines. The Philippines' President, Rodrigo Duterte, reaffirmed at the meeting that the dispute should be solved “within the boundaries of the law, referring to the arbitral ruling under the Philippines v. China case by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in July 2016. The draft statement of meetings included lukewarm criticism over China’s actions in the South China Sea. However, there were no statements about ASEAN’s position on the arbitral ruling. No multilateral statement has been clearly made to reflect the voice of the ASEAN community as a whole on the South China Sea issues. China reiterated that there should be no interference and the issues should be dealt in a bilateral manner.
ASEAN Summit
Under the ASEAN Charter, the ASEAN Summit is the supreme policy-making body of ASEAN. It comprises the heads of state or government of each member state. Accordingly, the Chairmanship of ASEAN rotates annually, based on the alphabetical order of the English names of ASEAN member states. The member state assuming the Chairmanship holds it for one calendar year, and chairs the ASEAN Summit and related summits, the ASEAN Coordinating Council, the three ASEAN Community Councils, relevant ASEAN Sectoral Ministerial Bodies and senior officials, and the Committee of Permanent Representatives. In addition, the Secretary General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is appointed by the ASEAN Summit, selected from among nationals of ASEAN member states based on alphabetical rotation. The Chairmanship of ASEAN for 2026 is held by Philippines.| Member state | Representative | Member state | Representative | Member state | Representative | |||||
– Association of Southeast Asian Nations – Member since 9 1 2023 – | Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn |  |size=x75pxASEAN Summit MeetingsThe ASEAN Summit Meetings are held by its ten member states annually. Under the ASEAN Charter, ASEAN Summit Meetings are held twice annually, to be hosted by the member state holding the ASEAN Chairmanship. Further special or ad hoc meetings may be convened whenever necessary, to be chaired by the member state holding the ASEAN Chairmanship at venues to be agreed upon by the ASEAN member states.
|
Indonesia