ASEAN summit to open in Jakarta

HANOI, May 7 (Itar-Tass) -- Fight with natural calamity effects,
prevention of regional conflicts and advancement along the way of closer
integration in Asia are among the main topics of the 18TH summit of the
Association South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) due to open in the capital of
Indonesia - - Jakarta on Saturday. The two-day forum will be held under
the slogan: "ASEAN community in global community of nations."
"Of late, the region and the world constantly encounter with many
challenges, including natural disasters, the effects of the global
currency and financial crisis, various internal differences leading to the
aggravation of conflicts and emergence of armed confrontations ,"
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia said opening the summit.
"In such a situation, ASEAN shouldn't stand aside making no steps to
prevent these problems and reduce the scale of negative effects," he
stressed.
According to the Indonesian leader, in the contemporary world, ASEAN
"cannot just keep silent and do nothing." "Countries should intensify
cooperation both inside the association and with partners outside its
framework," Yudhoyono added. This partnership, as the president said,
"should be oriented at searching for solutions of most topical problems
which both ASEAN and the whole contemporary world encounter with." Among
them are issues of energy and food security, fight with natural calamity
effects, prevention of trade in people and other kinds of transnational
and transborder crime.
The agenda of the 18th ASEAN summit includes such topics as
strengthening inter-bloc integration, restoration of the region's economy
after the global crisis, as well as raising of the association's role in
international affairs. Besides, the heads of state and government of ten
member-countries of the organization will discuss directions and measures
to speed up the implementation of the "road map" of creating by 2015 a
common community of ASEAN, consider an application lodged by the youngest
state of South-East Asia - - Eastern Timor for joining the association and
begin searching ways to settle the armed confrontation on the border of
Cambodia and Thailand.