The Hindu : Ministers to meet

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 15, 2002

International

International

Ministers to meet

By Amit Baruah

SINGAPORE: Thailand's Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, has said a Ministerial meeting to discuss his proposal for an Asian Co-operation Dialogue (ACD) would take place in Thailand next month. China, Japan and South Korea have welcomed the Thai-sponsored initiative, which proposes to set up a forum for discussion on the Asian continent, Mr. Thaksin was quoted as saying. ``It's a great honour for Thailand that they responded positively and quickly when the proposal was raised,'' said Mr. Thaksin referring to his talks at the China-led Boao Forum for Asia, which took place on the Chinese island of Hainan. He said the ACD would boost the bargaining powers of Asian countries and could be used against those in other parts of the globe. ``If we group together, we'll have more power to negotiate. If not, Asian nations will be divided and compete against each other and become weak. The negotiating powers will prevent us from being taken advantage of and allow us to eradicate poverty.'' India too has supported the idea of an Asia Co-operation Dialogue (ACD) and is likely to send a high-level representative for the preparatory talks.

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Ministers to meet