25th ASEAN & 12th East Asian Summit

25th ASEAN & 12th East Asian Summit

The 25th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and 9th East Asian Summit were held in the second week of November at Nay Pyi Taw in Myanmar.

It is the first time that Myanmar took the rotating ASEAN chairmanship since it joined the bloc in 1997. Leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, along with other world leaders, including US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gathered in Myanmar's capital to discuss the establishment of an economic community within the regional bloc. 

During the Summit, ASEAN members adopted the Nay Pyi Taw Declaration for the ASEAN Community’s Post-2015 Vision. The leaders also adopted the ASEAN Joint Statement on Climate Change 2014. The two-day summit also included meetings among leaders from China, South Korea, Japan, India, New Zealand, Australia, the US and Russia. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who went on a 10-day trip to Myanmar, Australia and Fiji in mid-November, attended both the summits and met several global leaders like US President Barack Obama. The prime minister raised the issue of black money with the global leaders and held discussions o strengthen bilateral business ties.

ASEAN Summit

The ASEAN is a political and economic organisation consisting of ten countries of Southeast Asia, formed on August 8, 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Later, Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Cambodia also joined the group. In the ASEAN summit each member’s government head meets to discuss and resolve political, economic and regional issues. The member countries also do regular meetings other countries in the political and economic organization. In fact, ASEAN is known for its economic stability and GDP growth. India and ASEAN are second and third in terms of population. India and ASEAN are among the largest economies and among the three fastest growing economies in this century. 

Going ahead, the ASEAN Economic Community will be the goal of regional economic integration by 2015. The key characteristic of the community will be a single market and production base, competitive economic region, region of equitable economic development, and region fully integrated into the global economy. This is likely to transform ASEAN as there will be free movement of goods, services, investment, skilled labour, and flow of capital.  ASEAN’s commercial potential will take more concrete shape by 2015 if plans for a 10-country single-market Economic Community come to fruition. The liberalisation of trade, integration of capital markets, and visa-free intra-regional travel for ASEAN’s 600 million people are set to create major new opportunities for growth and increase the region’s overall competitiveness. 

According to the ASEAN Secretariat, 80% of required measures for the community have been implemented before the 10 member states strive to build a single ASEAN market and production base, a competitive economic region, an equitable economic development and integration into the global economy next year.

The envisaged ASEAN community will have a combined GDP of USD 2 trillion. Leaders of the 10-member ASEAN also discussed the threat of terrorism in the region and maritime disputes involving China. In Asia, the dynamic of growth story has been shifting ever since the economies of China’s and India’s began to expand in terms of GDP, rising incomes and abundant skilled workforce. Leaders of ASEAN countries have noted this fact and have extended the hand of cooperation. Also, with emerging markets around the world under renewed scrutiny as global capital movements pose fresh challenges for policy-makers, the ASEAN region has to reinforce its long-term potential as an economic and commercial powerhouse. However, many challenges remain in removing protectionist barriers, particularly in agriculture and sectors such as banking, insurance, telecoms and retail, underlining the difficulties of creating a common market among countries at widely different levels of development.

Myanmar’s President Thein Sein listed five tasks which the ASEAN nations should focus on when they enter a new level of regional integration after 2015. These include efforts in promoting compliance to established ASEAN rules and norms, a strategy to promote ASEAN's central role in existing regional mechanisms and architecture, sustaining ASEAN's economic dynamism, enhancing its resilience and competitiveness as well as improving institutional efficiency, effective decision-making and follow-up capacity. 

The free trade pact in services and investment between India and the ASEAN is expected to help the bilateral trade touch US $100 billion by 2015. The bilateral trade grew 4.6% from US $68.4 billion in 2011 to US $71.6 billion in 2012. ASEAN's exports were valued at US $43.84 billion and imports from India amounted to US $27.72 billion in 2012. The ASEAN community has the third largest population, would be the seventh largest economy in the world and the third fastest growing economic unit this century.

East Asian Summit

The East Asian Summit (EAS) is a forum held annually by leaders of 18 countries including the United States and Russia.

EAS is a forum for dialogue on broad strategic, political and economic issues of common interest with the aim of promoting peace, stability and economic prosperity in East Asia. The concept of an East Asia Grouping has significant history going back to an idea first promoted in 1991 by then Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad for an East Asia Economic Caucus. Prime Minister Modi represented India in the EAS summit in Myanmar. At the East Asia Summit, leaders discussed how to strengthen regional institutions, international norms and regional cooperation in pursuit of peace, stability and prosperity. All the members recognized the fact that the East Asia Summit could make a significant contribution to the achievement of the long-term goal of establishing an East Asian community.

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