- The birth of ASEAN+3 has been considered as a strong development step in the trend of regional integration and movement towards a new East Asia regionalism. - After 10 years of formation and development, ASEAN+3 became an important forum in the region. - For ASEAN, this organization was also improving it competitiveness and prestige in order to continue holding its core role in the ASEAN+3. - Thus, there is a need for ASEAN+3 to exert itself to continue holding its core role in the process of building the East Asia Community XE "East Asia Community. - Regionalism together with the global integration became the most-featured tendency in the world economy. - In the last years of the 20th Century, the East Asian integration and cooperation has actually changed towards the stronger development, especially after the 1997-1998 Asia Economic Crisis. - The leaders who attended the meeting were ready to pursue the evolution of the ASEAN+3 Summit into East Asian Summit, and finally to the East Asian Free Trade Area XE "Free Trade Area" as proposed by South Korea written in the Final Report of the East Asia Study Group XE "East Asia Study Group. - The most remarkable issue in the summit was that the leaders of China, Japan and South Korea had shown their supports to the decision made by the leaders of ASEAN countries on convention of the first ever East Asia Summit in 2005 in Malaysia. - The leaders also discussed the ideas which would be mentioned in the 2nd joint statement on the East Asia Cooperation XE "Cooperation". - In the statement by Mr. - Chairman of the 9th ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" Summit XE "ASEAN+3 Summit" in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on December 12, 2005, the leaders were pleased with the progress XE "progress" made on the ASEAN+3 Cooperation XE "Cooperation" in the past 8 years, and again asserted their same determination in implementation of the East Asia Community XE "East Asia Community. - All the members unanimously agreed that the East Asian Summit (EAS) would be convened annually, and believed EAS would play an important role in the region. - With the help of the efforts by the leaders in the ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" Summit XE "ASEAN+3 Summit" s, ASEAN+3 Cooperation XE "Cooperation" has been implemented in 20 different cooperation areas. - To fully acknowledge the ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" progresses, there could be a need to further examine the operation of the East Asia Vision Group XE "East Asia Vision Group" (EAVG) and the East Asia Study Group XE "East Asia Study Group" (EASG), the Track-II in the operation of ASEAN+3. - and later it was submitted to the 5th ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" Summit XE "ASEAN+3 Summit" in Brunei in the same year. - The reports suggested 20 key recommendations in the fields of economic, financial, political/security, environmental/energy, social/cultural/educational and institutional cooperation for the realization of the East Asian Community. - ii) Establishing and strengthening of mechanisms for addressing threats to peace in the region. - Pursue the evolution of the ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" Summit XE "ASEAN+3 Summit" into an East Asian Summit. - Promote networking and exchanges of experts in the conservation of the arts, artifacts, and cultural heritage of East Asian countries. - Promote East Asian studies in the region.. - Need for the ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" framework XE "ASEAN+3 framework" to remain the vehicle in the East Asia process of integration. - Participation issue in the ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" context”. - In the framework of ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation. - the projects would be implemented with the participation XE "participation" of the possible countries in the region. - The ASEAN-China FTA became a largest FTA in the world with the estimate of 1.7 billion population, and it would bring huge benefits to the both sides. - This objective has been unanimously approved in the Joint Statement at the ASEAN-Japan Summit held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on November 2002. - In the ASEAN-Japan Summit on 8 October 2003 in Bali, Indonesia the leaders of ASEAN countries and Japan have signed the Framework for the FTA between ASEAN and Japan. - Schedules of liberalization concessions between Japan and those ASEAN Member States that have concluded a bilateral EPA should not be renegotiated in the negotiation of the ASEAN-Japan CEP Agreement. - After the Asian financial and currency crisis, East Asian countries were aware of necessary to speed up the financial cooperation in the region. - The efforts of ASEAN+3 were shown in the Chieng Mai Initiative XE "Initiative" (CMI) and the Asian Bond Markets Initiative (ABMI).. - Despite some limitations, but as the beginning of the financial-monetary cooperation in East Asia, CMI paved the ways for fostering trade and investment development among countries in the region. - Another initiative in the financial cooperation within ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" framework XE "ASEAN+3 framework" was to set up an Asian Bond Market XE "Market" (ABM). - This proved that the regionalism tendency in East Asia was realized by the countries in the region. - there are many challenges that ASEAN+3 would face in the process of development. - After 40 years of operation, ASEAN has affirmed its important position in the region and the world. - non-interference in the internal affairs of one another. - The new environment has eased the tensions in the region through the multilateral negotiation. - To build a long term stable and peaceful environment in the region, the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) has been established in 1994. - The real interests of the ASEAN in the first days of its establishment were politics and regional security. - The role of ASEAN has been presented in: the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation XE "Cooperation" (APEC) which was formed in 1989, ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) which was established in 1994 and The Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) started in 1996. - As an initiator, ASEAN was successful as a decisive role in the ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" framework XE "ASEAN+3 framework. - Always being as the chairman at the ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" Summit XE "ASEAN+3 Summit" s and at the Ministerial Meetings, ASEAN proved itself as a promoting factor in the ASEAN+3 Framework. - In its role as a chairman to the summits, ASEAN has well prepared to assure successfulness of the ASEAN+3 Summits in the past time. - In the context that China and Japan competed for their influences in the region, ASEAN became the one to regulate interests for parties to assure the development of the ASEAN+3 process. - However, to improve competitiveness and to sustain the leading role in the process of ASEAN cooperation, ASEAN needs to improve its inner economic cooperation. - This was really an importantly turning point in the process of the ASEAN economic cooperation. - In the process of ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" Cooperation XE "Cooperation. - Thus, the advantage of ASEAN was that it was supported by these three countries as a leading role in the process of ASEAN+3 cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation. - ASEAN would lose its prestige and the central role in the process of ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation" if the association doe not determine to overcome these challenges.. - Therefore, a demand of constructing an ASEAN Charter becomes a central subject in the ASEAN Summits in recent years. - for 10 years of existence ASEAN became the intermediator to harmonize relations in the ASEAN+3 framework XE "ASEAN+3 framework. - Areas of ASEAN+3 or ASEAN+1 cooperation are of economy and finance those are still weak in the organization. - The roles and objectives of China in ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" China is emerging to prove its position in the world. - China is initiatively emerging to play a big role in the economies of the region and the world. - Implementation of the “Good Neighbor Policy” in the 1990s, China has established many diplomatic relations and opened trade cooperation with many countries. - China always wants to prove itself as a trustful partner in the region, especially to the ASEAN countries. - China always supports ASEAN as a leading role, a decisive factor in the process of the ASEAN+3 cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation. - China also affirmed that the ASEAN - China cooperation was very important in the process of ASEAN+3 cooperation. - China believed that ASEAN-China cooperation played a very important role in the process of ASEAN+3 cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation". - The signing of the framework puts ASEAN in a new position in the relation with the world’s big economic partners. - With its economic potential and increasing influences, China is truly playing a key role in the process of ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation" and East Asia cooperation XE "East Asia cooperation. - To the mid 90s decade, when Mexico signed the FTA with the US (NAFTA) and with Europe (Mexico-EU FTA), the booming of the FTA in the world forced Japan to change its trading policy. - The counterpart that firstly chosen to form FTA was Singapore, a member state of the ASEAN and a country that was not obstructed by the heavy subsidy policy in the japan’s argriculture during the process of negotiation. - The achievements in the framework of ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation" and the ASEAN+1 mechanism promote ASEAN-Japan cooperation and not only bring about joint benefits for the both sides but also an important factor for the process of regional economic integration. - In 1960, Korea is one of the poorest countries in the world with the GDP per capita was only USD 79. - Currently, South Korea’s economy is in 11th position in the world. - Those were: i) after the born of the WTO in 1995, the quantity of the bilateral and regional FTA rapidly increased in the region and the world as well. - iii) in the ASEAN+3 Summit XE "ASEAN+3 Summit" in 1998 in Hanoi, the Korea’s president Kim Dae-jung issued the initiative of forming the East Asia Vision Group XE "East Asia Vision Group" (EAVG) in order to set a long term plan for the region’s cooperation. - Both countries are competing and controlling each other for leading role in the region. - Korea also wants to affirm indispensable tendency in the process of cooperation and dialogue in the region when participating into ASEAN+3. - Within the ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation" framework, Korea shows it as a member that has many contributions to speeding up cooperation in the region. - At present, ASEAN are holding its leading role in the process of ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation. - In fact, the current cooperation lies in the ASEAN+1 mechanism. - At present, the guiding role belongs to ASEAN, and all three North East Asian countries are supporting the leading role by ASEAN in the process of ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation" and East Asian integration. - Thus, three nations: China, Japan and Korea would be considered as having a key role in the process of the region’s free trade areas construction. - While many advantages in the economic relation, there are still many contradictions and conflicts existing in the relation between North East Asian countries that would not be resolved overnight, especially those left behind by the history that would affect the environment of the region’s integration and slow down the process of the ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" cooperation XE "ASEAN+3 cooperation. - Instability in the relation among three North East Asian countries was also caused by the sea border disputes. - The tension on nuclear issues in the Korean peninsula also caused instability in relations amongst three North East Asian countries. - It is able to recognize that East Asian countries approached to regionalism rather late compared with this trend in the world. - This was the event that marked a new cooperation level in the region. - In the first EAS, all the members agreed the ASEAN played a key role in EAS, and ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" was a backbone in the process of East Asian cooperation. - ASEAN also worries about losing its current position in the region. - The process of ASEAN+3 XE "ASEAN+3" is the indispensable development of the tendency for cooperation in the region resulted by the increasingly regional integration and globalization processes. - Forging closer ASEAN-China Economic Relation XE "Relation" in the Twenty first century”, A Report submitted by the ASEAN-China Expert Group on Economic Cooperation XE "Cooperation. - These trends have increased the need to enhance and deepen economic cooperation in the East Asian region through the efforts for an EAFTA. - In the East Asian region, efforts for establishing FTAs are already underway. - The EASG recommends that the governments of East Asian countries consider the establishment of an EAFTA as a long-term goal, taking into account the variety of differences in developmental stages and the varied interests of the countries in the region. - In order to realize the idea of an EAFTA, it is important that the feasibility and the influences of the EAFTA be discussed not only in the AEM+3 meetings but also in the ASEAN+3 Foreign Ministers Meeting. - As it is clearly stated in the Joint Statement on East Asia Cooperation XE "Cooperation" issued in November 1999, the leaders of ASEAN countries, China, Japan, and Korea agreed to bolster efforts to strengthen SMEs. - The EASG notes that the idea of establishing an ASEAN+3 SME network will facilitate intra-regional investment by SMEs in the East Asian region. - The leaders of ASEAN countries, China, Japan, and Korea agreed, in the Joint Statement on East Asia Cooperation XE "Cooperation" issued in November 1999, to strengthen efforts in accelerating investments. - The ASEAN region is a leading recipient of FDI flows in the developing world. - During the early days of the Asian financial crisis, Japan suggested that an Asian Monetary Fund (AMF) could help East Asian economies in trouble and check financial contagion in the region. - ASEAN countries, China, Japan, and Korea need to extend the study in the East Asian region. - However, to preserve the marine environment in the East Asian region effectively, it may be insufficient that the governments of ASEAN countries, China, Japan, and Korea simply participate in the Work Plans of the UNEP regional programs. - With the recovery from the recent financial crisis, most countries in the region will face soaring energy demands. - ASEAN+3� XE "ASEAN+3. - Joint Ministerial Statement of the Sixth ASEAN+3� XE "ASEAN+3. - in the Twenty first century”, A Report submitted by the ASEAN-China Expert Group on Economic Cooperation� XE "Cooperation. - Forging closer ASEAN-China economic relations in the twenty-first century: A report submitted by the ASEAN-China expert Group on economic cooperation, October 2001