ASEAN FMs kick off meeting to prepare summits

Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members are to meet on Tuesday here to assess the outcome of the 44th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting on July 19 in Bali and the informal Foreign Ministers Meeting on September 24 in New York. Issues regarding the establishment of ASEAN Institute for Peace and Reconciliation, ASEAN Community development, ASEAN Charter implementation, ASEAN Common Visa Implementation for Non-ASEAN citizens and the implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea will also be on the table.The meeting will be chaired by Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs H.E. Marty Natalegawa. The ASEAN Senior Economic Officials'' Preparatory Meeting and SEANWFZ Commission Meeting will also be held on Tuesday. The prelude senior officials meeting held Monday mainly discussed issues related to the upcoming ASEAN Summit and Related Summits slated for Nov. 17-19, such as the draft Bali Declaration on the ASEAN Community in a Global Community of Nations, the draft Declaration of the East Asia Summit (EAS)on the Principles for Mutually Beneficial Relations and the draft EAS Declaration on the ASEAN Connectivity.