FIRST ASEAN-US LEADERS MEETING TO BE HELD SUNDAY

Jakarta, Nov. 14 (ANTARA) - The First ASEAN-US Leaders Meeting will be held in Singapore, Sunday (Nov. 15) co-chaired by Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva as the current ASEAN Chair and US President Barack Obama.

"The stage is set for both ASEAN and the United States to enhance their engagement and deepen their cooperation with the first-ever joint meeting between all the Heads of State/Government of ASEAN Member States and a US President," the Jakarta-based ASEAN Secretariat said on its official website, Saturday.

At the meeting, the US is expected to pronounce its policy of enhancing engagement with ASEAN, which it regards as a key partner in the promotion of peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region. The US is also expected to announce further support for ASEAN?s integration plans.

"There is renewed interest of the Obama administration to engage ASEAN and this historic meeting of the Leaders in Singapore is an unequivocal example of this," said ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan as quoted on the website.

Pitsuwan also said he was positive that the meeting would bring the ASEAN-US dialogue onto greater heights.

Both sides are to share the need to broaden and deepen ASEAN-US cooperation to promote educational exchanges, including in science and technology, and in people-to-people interactions. Future areas of cooperation, such as people mobility, interfaith dialogue and development cooperation, are also on the cards.

The leaders were also expected to exchange views on regional and international security issues, non-proliferation and disarmament, the global financial crisis and their vision of regional architectures.

Guided by the Joint Vision Statement on the ASEAN-US Enhanced Partnership and its Plan of Action as well as the 2009 Revised Priorities for Cooperation under the ASEAN-US Enhanced Partnership, dialogue relations have gone from strength to strength from its inception 32 years ago.

Already substantial economic ties are expected to be strengthened further as a result of the meeting. Two-way goods trade reached $178 billion in 2008 and ASEAN is host to US foreign direct investment of $153 billion, making it the favoured US investment destination in Asia.

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