WEF participants agree to jointly cope with economic crises

BANGKOK, May 31 (TNA) - Participating world leaders expressed their agreement in Bangkok on Thursday, during a session of the World Economic Forum (WEF) on East Asia, with the integration of economies in the region, especially in the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), to boost entirely-regional potential to cope with economic crises. Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Kittirat Na-Ranong joined other world leaders, including World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Pascal Lamy and Indonesian Trade Minister Gita Wirjawan, in echoing the agreement at the session on “East Asian Models for Transforming the Global Economy”, in which Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi also took part. The session, during which the WTO chief insisted that economic integration would boost regional capabilities to cope with economic crises, particularly focused on economic integration in East Asia, especially on the formation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by 2015. The Thai deputy prime minister said that the world is facing economic problems; while Asia alone is suffering from national disparity in several aspects, including development, people's income and education, calling for re-distribution of income, especially for those with lower earning namely farmers. The Thai deputy premier also suggested that the first measure Thailand and other ASEAN members should launch be the reduction in transport fees to facilitate the expanding communication networking in the region. (TNA)