During 13-14 January 2010, Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya attended the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat and Related Meetings in Da Nang, Viet Nam. The meetings held included the 3rd Meeting of the ASEAN Political-Security Council (APSC), the special meeting of the ASEAN Coordination Council (ACC), and the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat, respectively.
At the end of the day, Foreign Minister Kasit gave an interview to the press highlighting the very fruitful discussions held, particularly on the issue of ASEAN Connectivity. On this issue, the Meeting had adopted the terms of reference for the ASEAN Connectivity High Level Task Force, which would draft a master plan encompassing the development of hardware issues -- through the development of infrastructure such as roads, railways, airports, waterways, telecommunication networks and electricity power grids -- and software issues through the promotion of closer people-to-people contacts. Priority would also be given to addressing missing links such as the construction of a bridge over the Mekong River between Myanmar and the Lao PDR. In this regard, Thailand distributed a working paper on “Possible Approaches towards Enhancing Regional Connectivity — A Preliminary View” for the consideration of the Meeting.
Regarding the work of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), the Meeting agreed that closer coordination be promoted between AICHR, as the overarching ASEAN body responsible for human rights and sectoral bodies within ASEAN, in particular on women and children rights issues, to avoid redundancy and duplication of work.
On ASEAN Centrality, the Meeting agreed that ASEAN should continue to play a central role in regional organisations and promote a more coordinated approach in the international fora, including the ASEAN’s involvement with the Japan-initiated East Asian community (EAc) and the Australia-led Asia-Pacific community (APc).
For further information, please contact the Press Division, Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tel.02-6435170, Fax.02-6435169, E-mail: div0704@mfa.go.th