Origins

The origins of the ASEM process lay in a mutual recognition, in both Asia and Europe, that the relationship between the two regions needed to be strengthened, reflecting the new global context of the 1990s, and the perspectives of the new century. In July 1994, the European Commission had already published "Towards a New Strategy for Asia", stressing the importance of strengthening our relationship with Asia, and of reflecting properly its political, economic and cultural significance. The Commission Communication of September 2001 (“ Europe and Asia: A strategic framework for enhanced partnerships ”) reaffirmed this objective.

In November 1994, Singapore and France proposed that an EU-Asia summit meeting be held, to consider how to build a new partnership between our two regions. Following this proposal, the first ASEM Summit was held in Bangkok in March 1996.

ASEM Partners

The ASEM 1 Summit brought together the fifteen EU Member States and the European Commission, with ten Asian countries (Brunei, China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam). As a result of the enlargement of the EU in May 2004, the ASEM Summit in Hanoi on 8-9 October 2004 enlarged ASEM to include the ten new EU Member States as well as three new ASEAN countries (Cambodia, Laos and Burma/Myanmar) that were not yet part of the process.

The ASEM 6 Summit held in September 2006 decided to admit Bulgaria and Romania on the European side, and India, Mongolia, Pakistan and the ASEAN Secretariat on the Asian side to the ASEM process. ASEM membership will be formally enlarged to 45 at the Beijing Summit on 24-25 October 2008.

ASEM’s structure and work

Since 1996, ASEM Summits have been held every two years in London (1998), Seoul (2000), Copenhagen (2002), Hanoi (2004) and Helsinki (2006). The next ASEM Summit will be held in Beijing on 24-25 October 2008. ASEM Ministerial Meetings in various sectoral dialogues addressing global issues of common concern are supported by regular meetings of senior officials.

Apart from the official meetings, nearly 100 initiatives (see List of ASEM Initiatives have been implemented over the past decade, including numerous expert-level, thematic working meetings and symposia, often involving the business communities and civil society groups of the two regions. Subjects covered have extended from the initial emphasis on economic cooperation to include human rights, rule of law, global health threats, sustainable development, and intercultural and interfaith dialogues.

As an informal process, ASEM has no secretariat. Foreign Ministers and their senior officials (SOM) have an overall coordinating role within the ASEM process, and are assisted by a group of Coordinators (currently China and Brunei on the Asian side, and the EU Presidency and Commission on the European side). The ASEM 6 Summit decided to set up an ASEM Virtual Secretariat, which would operate as a closed intranet system to facilitate management of agenda and working programme and enhance the institutional memory.

The only existing ASEM institution is the Asia-Europe Foundation ( ASEF ) in Singapore, a not-for-profit foundation charged with promoting cultural, intellectual and people-to-people contacts between the two regions

An Asia-Europe Cooperation Framework (AECF) was adopted at the ASEM 2 London Summit in 1998 to set out the underlying principles, objectives, priorities and coordination mechanisms of the ASEM process. An updated version (the AECF 2000 ) was approved by Leaders at the ASEM 3 Summit in October 2000.

The ASEM 6 Summit adopted the Helsinki Declaration on the Future of ASEM , identifying the key areas where ASEM should focus its work in the second decade. These include strengthening multilateralism and addressing global threats, globalisation and competitiveness, sustainable development and intercultural and interfaith dialogue. The Declaration also proposes improvements to ASEM’s working methods and institutional mechanisms, while stressing its informal nature.

A facilitator of dialogue and a promoter of cooperation

ASEM potentially covers all issues of common interest to Asia and Europe. It has provided a dialogue platform to address political, economic, and social/cultural issues.  As an informal process of dialogue, based on equal partnership and enhancing mutual understanding, ASEM can facilitate and stimulate progress in other bilateral and multilateral fora. ASEM has notably contributed to improving global governance, the international security environment, managing globalisation and its effects and has enhanced interregional and international business frameworks. ASEM has also served as a cultural dialogue facilitator and helped to increase mutual understanding through people-to-people contacts.

The past decade has also seen ASEM moving beyond dialogue to substantive cooperation where opportunities exist. The ASEM Asian Financial Crisis Response Trust Fund was set up in response to the Asian Financial crisis in 1997-99 in order to provide technical advice and training on financial sector and social policy reforms. It made a positive contribution to the swift recovery of the region from the crisis. The Trans-Eurasia Information Network (TEIN) provides a dedicated, high-capacity network linking the research and education networks of Asia and Europe, making possible many inter-regional and intra-regional collaborative projects. Many of the applications supported by TEIN2, such as medical training, are bringing tangible benefits to the population of both regions. Two other noteworthy past activities are the ASEM Investment Online and ASEM Investment Promotion Action Plan which both sought to enhance two-way investment flows.

Building a stronger partnership between Asia and Europe

ASEM is not a substitute for other bilateral or multilateral fora involving Asia and Europe, but it facilitates and stimulates progress in other settings. ASEM enhances synergies in Asia-Europe relations and complements other levels of relations between the two regions. For example, the ASEM Summits offer excellent opportunities for bilateral meetings to take place in parallel. The first Summit between the EU and China took place before the opening of the ASEM 2 Summit. EU-China and EU-Republic of Korea Summits were held in Helsinki in September 2006 before the ASEM 6 Summit.

The first decade of the ASEM partnership resulted in broader political dialogue, stronger economic relations, and extensive cultural exchanges contributing to a better mutual awareness of the cross-dimensional issues affecting both regions.