ASEM 6

Bismillahirrahmaanirrahiim

Distinguished Colleagues,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen

I am honoured to speak on behalf of my ASEAN Colleagues.

We hold our sixth summit as we observe a decade of ASEM. This is a good time to assess what we have done in ten years, to reflect on it, and to plan what to do next.

Ten years is not such a long time in the life of a forum. ASEAN at ten still consisted of just the six founding members. We were just holding our second summit and beginning to work together in earnest on the basis of Bali Concord I. 

When the EU was ten years old, it was still the EEC. It had only 12 members. Its economic policies were just beginning to be consolidated and it was moving towards greater political cooperation.

ASEM at ten is mature beyond its years. It has fulfilled its original aim of serving as an informal forum for dialogue and cooperation on the basis of equality and mutual respect. The statistics of our progress—our meetings, initiatives, and the growth in our membership—make impressive numbers. The larger story, however, is not told in numbers.

That story is told in the rise of the quality of our dialogue and its deepening global context. 

Our dialogue, now focused on the present but with great caring for the future, has become much more comfortable and geared more clearly toward practical results. We are working harder, assured of one another’s equality and mutual respect. And we are moving forward with greater confidence as we take up the challenges of our time.

One great challenge is the widespread yearning for a dialogue of civilizations that will lead to lasting global peace. But I think a large part of that dialogue has already begun in the processes of ASEM. In fact, ASEM is a constructive dialogue between the great civilizations of Europe and Asia, interfaith dialogue being an important aspect of it.  

That dialogue began ten years ago and it has since grown in strength and clarity. That is because the partners in the dialogue are also enhancing their roles on the global stage.

Europe today is a greater and more active force for peace than it was ten years ago. More important, Europe, like Asia, is a force that keeps kept faith with multilateralism in a world that has suffered much from unilateralist trends. 

I am grateful for the contributions of the EU to the consolidation of peace in Aceh. And I am hopeful that the active involvement of the EU in the Middle East today will revive the peace process. 

ASEAN and the rest of Asia have also changed for the better. When ASEM was born Asia was hailed for its economic miracle, but it was already on the brink of a deep financial crisis. Chastened by that crisis, Asia began a ferment of reform and economic integration. Thus its economic recovery is marked by a springtime of democracy—the rise of a home-grown democratic spirit in much of the region.

I think it is the unique business of our forum to build on the wealth of experience of the ASEM partners and make it serve not only our national development goals but also the welfare of humanity at large. 

As we mark the tenth year of our forum, let us resolve to continue learning from one another, helping one another, while serving as a force for dialogue and multilateralism in international affairs.

And let us continue to work together to nurture this vital partnership and cooperation between Asia and Europe based on the three pillars of political and security cooperation; economic, trade and investment; and socio-cultural cooperation.

Thank you.