Mr Akira Amari
Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry
Mr Nobutoshi Akao
Secretary General of ASEAN-Japan Centre
Mr Ryoki Sugita
President and Chief Executive Officer of Nihon Keizai Shimbun
Excellencies,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
1 I am pleased today to join you at this Symposium to commemorate the 40th Anniversary of ASEAN. In the past four decades, we have seen ASEAN grew from five to ten member nations. We have experienced many ups and downs in our pursuit of economic development. We have been buffeted by natural and man-made disasters. But during all these years, Japan has always been a steadfast friend for the region. Japanese investments and assistance have spurred developments in many ASEAN countries. Today, there are many Japanese companies and people throughout ASEAN. This reflects the close relations between Japan and ASEAN. But should we be satisfied with status quo? I believe no, otherwise you would not be here today. I would thus like to commend the organizers, the ASEAN-Japan Centre and Nihon Keizai Shimbun, for bringing together representatives from the government, business and media this afternoon. It provides a good opportunity to discuss ways to strengthen our economic relations in response to globalisation.
History of ASEAN-Japan Relations
2 Let me first touch briefly on the history of our relations, which did not begin smoothly. Many here would remember the anti-Japan riots which took place in Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines in 1974 when then-Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka visited Southeast Asia. This incident was triggered by the general perception in ASEAN that Japan was abusing its growing economic strength in ASEAN. If we had allowed that perception to persist, we will not be celebrating our excellent relations today. But thankfully, Japan's visionary Prime Minister Takeo Fukuda initiated the "Fukuda Doctrine" in 1977, which laid a firm foundation for the future development of ASEAN-Japan relations. The Doctrine articulated Japan's resolve to promote peace and progress in Southeast Asia, and to achieve a heart-to-heart understanding with the region. No other doctrine has had such an impact on our relations.
3 In the past 40 years, we have continually benefited from the generosity of Japan to the region. For example, in 1997 when ASEAN was badly hit by the Asian Financial Crisis, Japan, which was also affected by the crisis, proposed the New Miyazawa Initiative to help Asia recover from the crisis. Japan also led the way in proposing various initiatives to prevent a repetition of the crisis. These initiatives also helped to maintain stable economic development in East Asia. Japanese investors did not leave the region, unlike some other foreign investors of other countries. In December 2005, when the disastrous tsunami hit Indonesia and Thailand, Japan provided humanitarian assistance and aid expeditiously.
4 ASEAN and Japan have over the years overcome numerous problems together, enhancing our mutual understanding and strengthening our friendship along the way. Through its economic assistance and investment, Japan has contributed to the strong foundation of ASEAN's rapid export-oriented growth. Japan's Official Development Assistance (ODA) programme also plays an active role in helping many ASEAN countries attain the prosperity that they currently enjoy.
State of Relations Today
5 Today, good ASEAN-Japan relations are underpinned by strong economic ties. ASEAN-Japan economies are inextricably intertwined. ASEAN-Japan trade exceeded US$150 billion in 2005, more than 1/8 of total ASEAN trade. Japan is also one of ASEAN's top investors with investments worth US$3.16 billion in 2005.
6 With more than a thousand Japanese manufacturing companies in Thailand alone, ASEAN countries have benefited from Japanese investments through new production facilities and infrastructure. Many ASEAN countries have also benefited from technology transfer by Japanese companies. Using ASEAN as a production base, many Japanese companies have established a network of operations across ASEAN, making full use of the comparative advantages of the different ASEAN countries. These mutually-beneficial economic partnerships between Japanese companies and the ASEAN countries helped both parties develop together.
7 Today, ASEAN is stable and prosperous. Our economic links and trade with the world have also expanded. In 2005, ASEAN received more than US $41 billion worth of FDI. ASEAN's trade with the world exceeded US $1.2 trillion. To remain attractive to global business and investments, we have stepped up our integration efforts, especially our economic integration. The original deadline of 2020 for building the ASEAN Economic Community has been brought forward to 2015. This would allow us to become a single cohesive economic entity and realise our full potential of our combined market of 550 million people. The ASEAN Charter would speed up our integration efforts further. The Charter would transform ASEAN into a stronger rule-based community, and enable our member countries to better respond to the challenges of the future as one united entity. We look forward to the successful completion of the Charter at the next ASEAN Summit in Singapore this year.
Looking Ahead
8 Looking ahead, we have to ask ourselves, how should ASEAN and Japan work together to overcome the new challenges we face. For instance, the rise of China and India would change the regional economic landscape dramatically. For a quarter of a century, the Chinese economy has been steaming ahead with double-digit annual growth rates. The Indian economy also enjoys a respectable compounded growth rate of 6%. While the rapid economic development of China and India brings many benefits to the region, we would have to increase the speed of regional economic integration to enhance our respective competitiveness.
Ladies and Gentlemen
9 It is important that we spread the benefits of growth and facilitate integration of all parties with the global economy. To achieve this, further regional cooperation and integration within Asia is indispensable. It is also in the interest of ASEAN and Japan to ensure that the region is stable, open and interconnected through trade and investment. ASEAN and Japan can work closely in regional forums such as ASEAN+3, ARF, APEC and EAS to influence the formation of the regional structure. This is a vital step towards our common objective of an open and inclusive regional framework of cooperation. In specific terms, the ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership (AJCEP) and the longer-term Comprehensive Economic Partnership in East Asia (CEPEA) are important initiatives to bind ASEAN and Japan to each other.
10 In order to keep our maturing relationship going strong, it is important that we continue to explore new areas of collaboration. One such area is energy. Japan is a world leader in clean energy technologies and boasts up-to-date policies on energy efficiency and conservation. ASEAN can certainly learn much from Japan the uses of such technologies in a safe and responsible way. With closer collaboration between Japan and ASEAN in terms of knowledge sharing, technology transfer and industry development, our ties would certainly be enhanced as well.
11 As the ASEAN Chairman this year, Singapore looks forward to working closely with Japan to further this already substantive relationship. Singapore and Japan have established a forward-looking partnership based on the many mutual interests and shared strategic perspectives. Our cooperation has broadened from bilateral initiatives to cooperation that promotes regional stability and development.
Ladies and Gentlemen
12 It has been 30 years since the Fukuda Doctrine was announced. It would be timely for Japan to develop its new strategic vision for its relations with ASEAN. ASEAN remains important to a revitalised Japan. Our longstanding multi-faceted relations notwithstanding, there remains much room for ASEAN and Japan to further cooperate for mutual benefits. I am confident that our distinguished panelists would discuss this issue in greater detail in the session after this. I look forward to hearing new ideas on bringing ASEAN-Japan relations to a higher plane.
13 I wish you all a fruitful and successful symposium.
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