Back in the 1970s when I attended ASEAN ministerial meeting with General Romulo, ASEAN was a rather informal group of five Southeast Asian neighbors. Today ASEAN itself has ten members and at its latest summit meeting, in the resort town of Hau-Hin, Thailand, it included its three dialogue partners, China, Japan and South Korea and was followed by an East Asia Summit, composed of the leaders of Australia, India and New Zealand. The one thing they all appear to have in common is that they have survived the global financial crisis, relatively unharmed , compared to the US and Europe.

In the light of the recent catastrophic typhoons and floods, a permanent emergency rice reserve was set up in anticipation of new calamities. Thailand and the Philippines failed to settle their argument about Philippine tariffs on imported Thai rice – a discussion which will be addressed by the two sparring countries next month.

The formal agenda included increasing regional trade, lowering tariffs, discussing free trade zones and climate change.

An impediment to regional trade is inadequate infrastructure. China, whose economy is booming, agreed to set up an ASEAN –China center in Beijing and intends to help build roads in Myanmar and Cambodia and finance a bridge over the MeKong river between Laos and Thailand. It also will find an ASEAN infrastructure loan program.

The new premier of Japan, Yukio Hatoyama, presented his plan for an East Asia community, similar to the European Union, which may eventually be realized. Meanwhile, the summit did inaugurate an ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights which came as something of a surprise to observers of inter-ASEAN conflicts, such as the problem of Myanmar. But the Thai Prime Minister, Abhisit Vajjajiva, defended the agreement, saying that although it has no power to impose sanctions it will promote public awareness of human rights infringements and educate the people of the region.

While Japan remains committed to its ties with the United States, other countries discussed the need for finding new areas of economic growth, so that the ASEAN region could become more independent of the US and Europe. The ASEAN countries have already signed a trade agreement that has progressively eliminated tariffs on about 90% of goods, and plans to end with nearly tariff free interregional trade by next year.

ASEAN also has preferential tariff agreements with China, India and Japan and intends to create an economic community with a free flow of goods and services by 2015.

Thailand’s Prime Minister who hosted the meeting, explained in a TV interview, “We need a new growth model, strengthening domestic markets and liberalizing trade in the region.’’

A review of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty is scheduled to be held in the Philippines and presided over by the Philippine president in May 2010. Meanwhile, ASEAN leaders have urged member states to sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in advance of the review. The Treaty calls for nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation and the peaceful use of nuclear energy.ASEAN members have already signed on to the 1997 Southeast Asian Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty. On the subject of regional non-proliferation ASEAN appealed to North Korea to comply with its obligations to UN Security council resolution to stop its nuclear program.

Next month ASEAN leaders will hold their first US/ASEAN summit when President Obama comes to Singapore in November for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Conference, and will meet ASEAN leaders on the sidelines. This will be Obama’s first trip to Asia, as President.