PRESIDENT TO PARTICIPATE IN ASEM SUMMIT

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia /MONTSAME/ A delegation headed by the State Head Ts.Elbegdorj will take part in the 9th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit to run on November 5-6 in Vientiane, Laos. At the summit, the member states will raise regional and international issues and will run discussions with themes "Economic and financial matters", "Global problems", "Social and cultural cooperation", "Regional problems" and "Further developmental tendency of ASEM". It is expected that state leaders of some 30 countries will participate in the summit. The Secretary-General of the ASEM, the head of the Council of the European Union, and the President of the European Commission will take part in the summit as well. Officially established in 1996 at the first summit in Bangkok, the ASEM is an interregional forum which consists of the European Commission, the twenty-seven members of the European Union (EU), the thirteen members of the ASEAN Plus Three regional grouping, as of 2008, India, Mongolia, and Pakistan, and as of 2010, Australia, Russia and New Zealand. Mongolia joined the ASEM in 2006 at the 6th Summit held in Helsinki. In 2011, Mongolia hosted the immigration authorities meeting of the ASEM countries. Moreover, 4th Environment Ministerial Meeting of the ASEM was held in May of this year in Mongolia. B.Khuder