Mr Co-Chairmen
Excellencies
Ladies and Gentlemen
I would like to join my Thai colleague in extending a warm welcome to His Excellency Mr Igor S Ivanov, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.
Russia occupies a strategic place in international affairs. You are a Permanent Member of the UN Security Council, and have been at the center of regional initiatives such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. At a time when the Asia-Pacific is undergoing changes and the major powers are re-defining their relations with one another, Russia continues to play a useful role in helping to preserve regional stability.
Russia is also an important Dialogue Partner to ASEAN. We view the ASEAN-Russia Dialogue as a firm partnership for the long-term. The Dialogue framework allows both sides to exchange views so that we understand each other better and to explore avenues of co-operation. We value your perspectives on regional and international issues, which provides ASEAN with a sense of your commitment and priorities in the region. In this regard, the political exchanges that take place at the ASEAN-Russia Senior Officials'' Meeting is a valuable component of the Dialogue. You have played a constructive role in the success of regional security fora such as the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). We also welcome your support of other ASEAN initiatives such as the Treaty of Amity and Co-operation in Southeast Asia and the SEANWFZ Treaty.
We also regard the economic and functional aspects of the Dialogue to be important. Our officials are already examining various proposals. What we need is to focus on suitable project ideas in areas where there is a good match between Russia''s expertise and ASEAN''s priorities. Here, the recently streamlined ASEAN-Russia Joint Planning and Management Committee could, perhaps, take stock of the various proposals and make appropriate recommendations on practical areas of co-operation.
We need not be overly ambitious but we need to progress. It has only been five years since Russia became a full Dialogue Partner and it is important that we allow the Dialogue to move at a pace comfortable to both sides. For now, it may be better for us to take practical steps forward. We can touch on some of these areas during our closed session.
In closing, let me compliment Thailand for its good work as ASEAN''s country co-ordinator in pushing the Dialogue process forward. Singapore will strive to build on this momentum when we take over the co-ordinatorship in 2003.