The 45th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting will be held in Phnom Penh from 6-13 July 2012. India will be participating in the ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting, the East Asia Summit (EAS) and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF).
Several major agreements on peace and security are expected to be signed with the region’s Dialogue Partners and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) – China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the U.S. At the top of the list are the agreements for the accession of the European Union to one of the region’s foremost instruments on peace and security, the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia.
The ARF is a regional forum where the ministers conduct discussions on regional and international security issues, cooperation to promote peace, security and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. A review OF the Hanoi Plan of Action to Implement the ARF Vision Statement 2020 is expected. The EAS is a regional leaders’ forum for strategic dialogue and cooperation on key challenges facing the East Asian region.
The protocol to the treaty of the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ) by the five recognized nuclear weapon states is scheduled to be signed at this summit. Deliberation on the South China Sea dispute is also on the agenda, but may only be confined to backroom whispers.
India has signed the following agreements with ASEAN:
ASEAN-India Partnership for Peace, Progress and Shared Prosperity.
ASEAN – India Joint Declaration for Cooperation to Combat International Terrorism.
Plan of Action to Implement the ASEAN-India Partnership for Peace, Progress and Shared Prosperity.
Instrument of Accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia by India.
Instrument of Extension of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia to India.