Asian, European Leaders Gather in Vietnam for Annual Summit

By Scott Bobb

Leaders from 38 Asian and European nations are in Vietnam for a summit of the Asia-Europe Meeting, known as ASEM. The main purpose is to discuss global trade and international issues, but that the question of Burma re-appeared before the meeting could start.

Delegates to the fifth Asia-Europe Meeting, or ASEM, are seeking to strengthen ties while addressing challenges caused by a major expansion of the informal discussion group.

The 10 newest members of the European Union as well as the three newest members of, ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, are joining at a time when the forum is seeking to inject new vitality into relations between Asia and Europe.

Europe is Asia's second largest trading partner after the United States and a number of trade agreements are expected to be signed.

Nevertheless, political tensions over how to deal with the repressive government in Burma, an issue that nearly caused the cancellation of this year's summit, quickly re-emerged.

The EU announced on the eve of the summit that Burma had failed to meet a deadline to release pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and stop harassing her National League for Democracy, and as a result it would tighten sanctions against Rangoon.

The foreign minister of the Netherlands, which holds the rotating EU presidency, Bernard Bot, said the Union maintains a twin-track approach on Burma, also known as Myanmar.

"On the hand, we believe in dialogue because we think it is very necessary that Myanmar is confronted directly with the complaints we have, not only from the European Union but also from the ASEM side," he said. "And secondly, the other side of the twin-track approach is of course sanctions."

He said the EU Monday would expand the number of senior Burmese officials banned from traveling to the EU and would block loans to the Burmese government and state-owned companies.

Earlier, the EU threatened to boycott the Hanoi meeting if the Burmese delegation attended. ASEAN governments, which advocate cooperation with Burma in order to encourage reform, countered that they would oppose inclusion of the 10 new EU members.

The dispute was only resolved through Vietnamese mediation, whereby Burma is attending but is represented by a ministerial delegation rather than a head of government.

"We may be seeing the emergence of a stronger Vietnam diplomatically within the Southeast Asian region, where it has played a sort of back burner role for much of this period," he said.

An expert on Vietnam at Australia's Defense Force Academy, Carl Thayer, says this ASEM represents a milestone for Vietnamese diplomacy.

An expert with Hanoi's Institute of Economic Management, Le Dang Doanh, says the two-day meeting is an important event for Vietnam as it prepares to join the World Trade Organization, or WTO.

"Vietnam tried to benefit from these meetings to enhance its international position, to push forward economic cooperation, also to prepare for the WTO accession," said Le Dang Doanh.

Analysts say they also expect the meeting to address broad political issues like the war in Iraq, United Nations reform and the social effects of globalization.

Scott Bobb, VOA News, Hanoi.

注释：
Asia-Europe Meeting 亚欧会议
Burma 缅甸
delegate 代表
Association of Southeast Asian Nations 东南亚国家联盟
inject 注入
vitality 活力
cancellation 取消
harass 侵扰
National League for Democracy 全国民主联盟
Rangoon 仰光
Netherlands 荷兰
Myanmar 缅甸（亦作：Burma）
boycott 联合抵制
Hanoi 河内，越南首都
mediation 仲裁
Australia's Defense Force Academy 澳大利亚国防军事学院
milestone 里程碑
enhance 提高
globalization 全球化