Asian leaders seek wider trade community

BANGKOK, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- Leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and six other countries ended meetings in Thailand determined to widen the region's trading community.

The leaders of ASEAN's 10 member nations met during the weekend in Thailand's beach resort of Hua Hin and also held meetings with the group's dialogue partners China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand.

ASEAN is made up of Brunei, Myanmar -- formerly known as Burma -- Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Indonesian Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu confirmed the ASEAN free trade area would start on time with planned tariff cuts by January 2010, the Jakarta Post reported.

The Voice of America quoted Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva as saying ASEAN and the other six nations also discussed establishing an East Asia free-trade agreement with proposals from Japan and Australia.

Indonesia's Mari said free trade agreements with ASEAN dialog partners India, Australia and New Zealand were all entering the implementation stage, while those with China, Korea and Japan had already started, the Jakarta Post reported.

The confidence of Asian economies stem from the fact they were better able to withstand the global economic crisis than Europe and the United States, accounting for their faster recovery, officials said.

The New York Times reported other issues discussed at the meetings included climate change and establishment of a human rights commission.