Address by The Hon Alexander Downer, MP, Minister for Foreign Affairs, to the ASEAN 30th Anniversary Seminar, Sydney, 26 August 1997.
Introduction
Secretary Siazon, Ambassadors, High Commissioners, other distinguished guests.
I am delighted to have the opportunity to address this audience at a seminar commemorating ASEAN's Thirtieth Anniversary.
As you may have noticed, I have spent a fair bit of my time in ASEAN countries recently, including a long visit to Kuala Lumpur for the ASEAN PMC, so this is a subject I feel well qualified to talk on.
Indeed, I welcome today Secretary Siazon, who is demonstrating that the traffic goes both ways, and would like to say how much I am looking forward to visiting the Philippines again in October this year.
In fact, Secretary Siazon, it was your Ambassador, Delia Albert, who reminded me of the quip about ASEAN made by our former Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser, during a visit to the Philippines in 1978.
Mr Fraser remarked on that occasion that ASEAN had a second meaning for Australians: it stands not only for the Association of South East Asian Nations, but also for "Australia's South East Asian Neighbours".
The point is that ASEAN's members are Australia's close neighbours, and we have close bilateral relations which are complemented by the excellent ties we have with ASEAN as an organisation - and have had since its inception in 1967.
Today, I want to talk to you about where ASEAN has been and where it's going, and about how I see Australia's partnership with ASEAN developing. In the parallel ASEAN symposium in Melbourne on Friday, my colleague the Minister for Trade, Mr Fischer, will speak in depth about the economic side of our partnership.
In particular, my address to you today will be on three themes:
First, the road to the present, and the foundation laid for the the strong relationship now existing between Australia and ASEAN.
Second, ASEAN's evolving role in the region.
And last, Australia's strengthening partnership with ASEAN.
PART ONE - ASEAN: The Road to the Present
Only a starry-eyed optimist would have considered there was anything auspicious about the year 1967 for the future of South East Asia. In international relations the ever-escalating war in Vietnam and the 'Cultural Revolution' in China dominated images of Asia. Nationalism and territorial tensions were fuelling suspicion among many of the newly independent nations of South East Asia. The short term prognosis did not look good.
Towards the end of that decade of considerable turmoil, the Bangkok Declaration of 8 August 1967 was not immediately recognised internationally as an historical watershed, particularly after two short-lived attempts at regional cooperation, first, in 1959, the Association of South-East Asia and then, in 1963, what was known as Ma-Phil-Indo, which grouped Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia.
But in 1997, after three decades of unprecedented harmony and development, we understand just how critical that first meeting between the foreign ministers of Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore and Thailand was to be for South-East Asia and for the region.
Over the course of three decades there have been a number of major milestones on the way to the cohesive regional grouping we see today.
At the first ASEAN Heads of Government in 1976, the landmark Declaration of ASEAN Concord and Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in South East Asia were signed. Thereafter, through the 1970s and 1980s ASEAN's voice gained influence in the region. Two defining issues, in particular, cemented political cooperation within the group - the handling of the refugee outflow after the reunification of Vietnam and the shaping of the Cambodian peace settlement after the overthrow of the Khmer Rouge in 1979.
But it is in the last decade that we have seen the most profound developments in ASEAN's cohesion. The establishment of the ASEAN Free Trade Area - or AFTA - and of the ASEAN Regional Forum - or ARF - most clearly underpin ASEAN's having emerged as a regional grouping of great influence.
And in 1995 ASEAN's founding vision of one integrated South East Asian community began to take real shape. Vietnam became the first socialist state to gain membership and the Heads of Government of all ten South East Asian countries met together for the first time in their history at a special session of the ASEAN Summit in Bangkok. And, of course we have recently seen ASEAN come closer to that vision with the admission of Burma and Laos.
The signing of the Bangkok Declaration and the formation of ASEAN was, it is now clear, a momentous event in the region's history.
Australia's Longstanding Involvement with ASEAN
The Australian Government throughout the period leading up to the coming together of ASEAN was certainly committed to cooperation with the countries of the region. In fact, Lord Casey, Australia's Foreign Minister throughout the fifties, stated unequivocally in 1954 that Australia's foreign policy was primarily concerned with South-East Asia.
The special relationship which developed between Australia and the ASEAN countries over this period was evident when Australia became, in 1974, ASEAN's very first dialogue partner. Through this unique system of bilateral relations with countries from around the world, inaugurated at the first ASEAN-Australia Economic Cooperation Program meeting in 1974, ASEAN has built a global web of relations with most of the influential players on the international scene.
Indeed, the ASEAN Australia Economic Cooperation Program aimed to give substance to our new partnership and to facilitate ASEAN's efforts to diversify its political cooperation into other areas of shared regional priority.
Australia's long term commitment to the region's development is also evident in its involvement in the Mekong Basin. Since the early days of the Mekong River Commission, we have been involved in the development of the Basin, providing funds, expertise and training.
Over the last twenty or so years, Australia has contributed two billion Australian dollars in development assistance to the South East Asian countries of the Basin alone. We helped Laos build the first ever bridge over the Mekong, and in co-operation with Vietnam we are building the second.
PART TWO - ASEAN's Evolving Role in the Region
Today, ASEAN is a symbol of prosperity and success, at the heart of a region glowing with opportunity and dynamic progress.
Many commentators have focused on ASEAN's growing economic strength, and the work to integrate the disparate economies through measures such as AFTA and the ASEAN Investment Area.
But parallel to ASEAN's economic success story, ASEAN countries have worked hard and successfully to develop a political role for the organisation, within the framework of consensus-based decision making and non-interference in each other's internal affairs.
ASEAN's successful political framework is best illustrated at the suite of meetings surrounding the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting and the ARF each year. From being a small closed shop, these meeting have become a major foreign policy market place where not just regional but also global players come to make their positions known and to cut new deals.
The informal nature of the side meetings - not to mention the famous song and dance routines - have created an atmosphere which is unique. It is now the most important set of meetings in my international calendar.
One of ASEAN's greatest achievements has been its capacity to promote stability among its members. ASEAN's tools are its consensus-based diplomacy, its capacity to draw in the great powers in a non-threatening way, and the clout its economic prosperity has given it, as well as the long experience of many of its leaders.
As a result, South-East Asia, once regarded as one of the world's most politically tumultuous regions, is now characterised, for the most part, by longstanding stability. ASEAN is now, though, facing what is perhaps its greatest challenge.
ASEAN's recent expansion to nine members is not only a realisation of the founders's vision., it is also a turning point for the organisation. It is a moment of truth as it takes on the challenge of using its prosperity and consensus-based cohesion to assist the new members in participating in the ASEAN success story. Laos and Vietnam have already demonstrated their commitment to the ASEAN way, and I am confident that they will move rapidly in co-operation with other ASEAN members.
But the region has two exceptions to the general rule of prosperity and stability: Myanmar, commonly known as Burma in Australia, and Cambodia.
I only want to touch briefly on Burma today, to say that, like the rest of the international community, Australia has deep concerns about the situation in that sad country. I look forward to an improvement in our bilateral relations as and when the situation in Burma improves. I urge other ASEAN countries to endeavour to ensure Burma can contribute to the political as well as economic success of the members of ASEAN.
Cambodia, despite the deferral of its ASEAN membership following the events in Phnom Penh, has given ASEAN an opportunity to reveal its now very substantial diplomatic capabilities.
Very early in the crisis, in its July emergency meeting, ASEAN showed it was willing to play a key role , and over the following weeks, culminating in recent Kuala Lumpur meetings, the rest of the international community agreed that ASEAN was in the best position to be a positive influence.
This is a new direction for ASEAN, a new challenge and a test of its political model, its flexibility and adaptability. I am confident ASEAN will meet this challenge successfully, and will play a positive and constructive role to assist Cambodians find a peaceful, democratic and constitutional resolution to their problems.
Indeed, the recent dramatic events in Cambodia have also highlighted the increasing importance of the ASEAN Regional Forum or ARF. The value of the ARF as a venue for addressing regional tensions was amply demonstrated at its recent fourth meeting in Kuala Lumpur. Discussions about Cambodia and Burma showed that the ARF was prepared to deal with sensitive issues in an open and direct way. The ARF's clear support for ASEAN's Cambodia initiative reflected an institution growing in maturity.
The ARF may in fact prove to be one of ASEAN's most important contributions to regional affairs - if not the most important. It is only four years old, a young organisation by international standards, yet it has already established itself as the primary multilateral forum for the discussion of security issues in the Asia Pacific region.
PART THREE - Australia's Strengthening Partnership with ASEAN
Having considered the stature which ASEAN has achieved over the last thirty years and the challenges now facing it, I'd like now to outline for you how we see Australia's already strong partnership with the region and with ASEAN developing.
Certainly, the Australian Government has no higher foreign policy priority than to contribute to the evolution of our region. And there is no better way of doing that than through the establishment of close and supportive links with ASEAN and its constituent countries. Australia is now rapidly developing its economic and security links with the region. This is a trend we can expect to see continuing, if not accelerating, for the foreseeable future.
Australia is pleased to have been able to fuel ASEAN's remarkable economic growth in its early years through the supply of Australian agricultural and mineral products. Today, both ASEAN's requirements and Australia's exports are more sophisticated, but we still cater to each other's needs.
Australian merchandise exports to ASEAN have grown dramatically, by almost 40 per cent in the past five years, to reach $A11.6 billion in 1996. ASEAN as a group is now Australia's second largest export market buying over 15 per cent of our total merchandise exports.
Australia's imports from ASEAN have also risen strongly over the last decade, with imports of manufactures such as computers and textile yarn, becoming increasingly significant. In 1996 imports from ASEAN represented 10 per cent of Australia's total merchandise imports, up from just 5 per cent a decade earlier.
Our next goal is to ensure that our strong trade and investment links continue to grow by providing a solid base. This is to be provided by the link between the ASEAN Free Trade Area - AFTA - and the Closer Economic Relations of Australia and New Zealand - CER. I urge the business communities in all our countries to help us make AFTA-CER an effective mechanism for our mutual benefit - not just so that business prospers or because we have an intellectual attachment to lowering trade barriers, but because lower barriers and freer trade in goods and services will create jobs and wealth for our communities.
The work we will put into AFTA-CER is one illustration of the importance we place on the role of our partnership with ASEAN in ensuring Australia's future prosperity; it is a work in progress which has my strong support. A more topical, a more tangible and immediate demonstration of Australia's commitment to the region and its political and economic stability was provided by Australia's immediate readiness to contribute to the Thai baht stabilisation package. In fact, as one commentator said in The Australian, "In joining Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia ... in the (baht) stabilisation program, Australia has done more for its regional credentials in one day's action in Tokyo than a year of blather from Canberra".
Well, I might have put it a little differently myself, but the basic point is clear: Australia is not just a fairweather friend - it is with the region for the long haul.
In addition to our extensive economic links, Australia has been building a wide-ranging set of bilateral security linkages with individual ASEAN countries. Our very important defence relationships with Malaysia and Singapore through the Five Power Defence Arrangements are a vital part of those linkages. More recently, Australia's Agreement on Maintaining Security with Indonesia has formed another key component in our web of bilateral security linkages with South East Asia. At a less formal level, Australia has also been extending the number of countries with which it has official bilateral dialogues on regional security issues. We already have such a dialogue with Indonesia, but at the ARF meeting last month I announced a number of important new dialogues, including with the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. These bilateral talks provide an opportunity to share views on a wide range of regional security issues. They help to build trust and they add yet another important layer to our relationships with the countries of ASEAN.
I believe they will provide a strong foundation for Australia's ASEAN security links over the coming two decades. For that reason, they are a key action element of the White Paper on Australia's foreign and trade policy which is to be made public in the very near future.
Australia's increasing contribution to our region is perhaps most clearly reflected in the growing people-to-people links being established by business men and women, academics and students, and the media. These are the linkages which perhaps have the most enduring effects.
Australians are everywhere in South-East Asia. There are thousands of expatriate Australians with high quality services skills and expertise to offer. These include highly skilled managers, engineers, investment bankers, doctors and educators forging bonds which integrate us even more firmly in the region's economy and society.
For the future, we see many areas of opportunities where Australia can continue and expand the great tradition of cooperation which has grown up between us in the decades since the Second World War. But one example is ASEAN's proposed Mekong Basin Development Cooperation process. Given our track record there we look forward to participating in ASEAN's initiative as it expands to include donor countries.
Conclusion
There is no question that Australia is committed to a deeper partnership with the countries of the region in which we live.
Australia has a political, an economic and a long term social interest in co-operating with other countries of the region to ensure our continued collective prosperity and progress. Australia was prepared to participate in the baht stabilisation program not just because Thailand is a good friend, not just because it is in our interest to ensure fiscal stability, but also because we want to work with our regional neighbours to secure our collective future.
In this region we will need to continue to work together to ensure our future prosperity and stability. As you in this room know better than most, Australia's partnership with ASEAN and its countries is expanding more and more, as we look for ways to deepen our relationship to our mutual benefit.
This is a process that will go on with or without governments. But I can tell you that the Government is committed to Australia and ASEAN's future together. As I said before, I have no higher foreign policy priority than to contribute to the evolution of our region.
Ultimately, Australia's partnership with ASEAN is a partnership of equals and a partnershp with an extraordinary future.
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