The Hindu : ACD must be clearly defined: Sinha

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 19, 2002

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International

ACD must be clearly defined: Sinha

By Amit Baruah

CHA-AM (Thailand) June 18 . India, while supporting the idea of Asian dialogue, believes that the whole concept of the Thai-backed Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) will have to be ``clearly defined''.

Talking to The Hindu as Foreign Ministers from across the Asian continent gathered, the Union Finance Minister, Yashwant Sinha, said this evening that a number of issues relating to the ACD needed to be resolved.

``India has been a supporter of Asian dialogue from the very beginning .... we had taken the initiative to (organise) the Asian Relations Conference (during the early days of Jawaharlal Nehru's Prime Ministership....'' he said.

An informal, working dinner being hosted tonight by the Thai Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, will probably discuss some of the questions raised by Mr. Sinha.

Interestingly, no officials will be present for the dinner.

In all, 16 Ministers will be present for the dinner. While Myanmar has declined to send a representative, the Chinese Foreign Minister, Tang Jiaxuan, will arrive only around midnight.

``One hopes that this meeting will be able to (resolve issues relating to the ACD) and then set the path to a more concrete dialogue.... at the moment, one can only say that this (interaction) is very preliminary and hopefully something will emerge out of the dialogue we will have here,'' he said.

Saying that India had no problem, in principle, with the ACD idea, Mr. Sinha said it was only that ``all this'' (the ACD process) will not happen suddenly.

``A lot of work will have to go into this and only then an Asian identity will emerge. But we look at this conference as a preliminary, first step towards the achievement of that objective.''

Asked if he believed that Asia was ready for a continent-wide forum given its immense diversity, the Finance Minister again underlined that the meeting in the seaside Cha-am resort was only a preliminary one.

(Asian) ``readiness'', he said, would depend on a number of factors. ``It's very difficult to say whether we are ready now or we'll be ready tomorrow. It will depend on how it (the ACD) is conducted and how everyone cooperates in this.''

`No contentious bilateral issues'

In a separate chat with this correspondent, the Thai Foreign Minister, Surakiat Sathirathai, discounted the possibility of contentious bilateral issues being raised at the informal or formal ACD sessions.

(Several Thai newspaper reports have referred to the forum being bogged down by India-Pakistan issues. Interestingly, Pakistan is being represented by its Minister for Minorities, Culture, Sports, Tourism and Youth Affairs, S.K. Tressler.

Earlier, the now-resigned Foreign Minister, Abdul Sattar, was to have attended the ACD.)

Dr. Surakiat said: ``I don't think so (that contentious issues will be raised). We are here to have positive thinking about cooperation among Asian countries....I think we would like to encourage positive thinking as to how to strengthen Asia. That's the spirit of the meeting,'' he said.

Asked if Thailand had been told that contentious issues would not be raised, he said: ``Yes, yes. We have discussed (this) with all countries. So, we have a consensus; an understanding that we'll be here exploring ways (in which) we can foster....cooperation.''

To a question if Thailand (as host and promoter) wanted the ACD to be an annual affair, Dr. Surakiat said, ``We will see. We have no fixed agenda or idea. So, we would like the countries participating to exchange views. But, yes, it's our thinking that we should meet periodically; whether it will be on an annual basis or whatever that is left to the participants to discuss tonight (at the working dinner) and tomorrow.''

Asked if there had been informal exchanges on the ACD idea with the U.S. and Europe, the Thai Foreign Minister replied in the affirmative.

Mr. Thaksin had mentioned about the ACD to the U.S. President, George W. Bush, while on a visit to Washington last year, he said, adding that the issue had also been discussed with senior European functionaries such as Romano Prodi and Chris Patten.

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