General Background
The ASEAN-US dialogue relationship began in 1977. During the early stages of the dialogue, priority was given to commodities, market and capital access, operation of transnational corporations, the transfer of technology, the development of energy resources, shipping and food security. US assistance was extended in areas such as regional plant/crop protection centres; forestry resources and conservation; agricultural development planning and non-conventional energy research.
The mid-80s, however, saw a number of significant changes in ASEAN and the US, which subsequently affected the nature and direction of the dialogue relationship. Higher levels of development in ASEAN and changes in the US's priority in development cooperation led to a decrease in official development assistance from the US. There was a shift away from basic human needs towards projects concentrating on regional cooperation and human resources development.
Subsequently, the focus of development cooperation between ASEAN and the US was re-oriented at the 8th ASEAN-US Dialogue in 1988. During the 1990s, a programme approach was adopted and the focus shifted to trade and investment, technology transfer and human resources development. It was decided that project selection would now adhere to the criteria of mutuality of interest, comparative advantage in the project area and project sustainability. These changes reflected a maturing of the relationship between ASEAN and the US.
This shift in emphasis brought with it both a change in focus as well as a change in the nature of development cooperation between ASEAN and the US. Now the private sector plays a key role in the development cooperation and networks have been established to facilitate market driven economic activities in ASEAN countries.
Institutional Framework
The US participates in a series of consultative meetings with ASEAN which includes the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the Post Ministerial Conferences (PMC) 9+1 and 9+10, the ASEAN Economic Minister-US Trade Representatives (AEM-USTR), the Senior Economic Officials Meeting-US Trade Representatives (SEOM-USTR), the ASEAN-US Dialogue Meeting, the Joint Planning Committee(JPC) Meeting and the ASEAN-US Business Council. The ASEAN-Washington Committee also assist in conducting and maintaining the dialogue with the US.
At the apex of the dialogue process is US's participation in the PMC process immediately following the ASEAN Ministerial Meetings. The PMC 9+1 and 9+10 meetings offer an opportunity for the US Secretary of State to review contemporary political, security, economic and development cooperation issues affecting the dialogue relations with the ASEAN Foreign Ministers. The US also participates in the ARF which takes stock of key regional political and security issues that have the attention of the region. Periodic dialogue meetings are held at the level of ASEAN's SOM leaders and the US's Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and the Pacific to provide a more in-depth review of political and security, economic, functional and development cooperation activities.
The ASEAN-US Dialogue has also focused more and more on political and security discussions over the years, particularly with the end of the Cold War. The principle focus of the ASEAN-US security dialogue has been the role of the US in maintaining stability in the region. Other areas of concern include nuclear non-proliferation, regional security issues, the South China Sea and the Korean peninsula.
Economic Cooperation
Total trade between ASEAN and the US has increased almost fourfold from US$23 billion in 1980 to US$80 billion in 1996. ASEAN is the fourth largest trading partner of the US after Canada, Japan and Mexico. For the US, ASEAN has been one of the fastest growing export markets. Between 1990-94, US exports grew at an average annual rate of 14.1%. Today, more than half of ASEAN's exports to US consists of industrial machinery and equipment including electronics, telecommunication components, computers and computer parts.
In recent ASEAN-US meetings, besides political and security issues and development cooperation, economic issues have also been placed in the agenda. Areas discussed include trade, commodities, investment cooperation, and the Alliance for Mutual Growth (AMG). Views have also been exchanged on regional trade developments such as APEC, AFTA, NAFTA and the EAEC. Economic cooperation also takes place through bodies like the Trade and Investment Committee (TICC), the AEM-USTR Consultations and the ASEAN-Washington Committee.
Development Cooperation
During the 11th ASEAN-US Dialogue in Brunei Darussalam in May 1993, the US indicated that its assistance to ASEAN would be carried out solely through the Private Investment and Trade Opportunities (PITO) project and the Environment Improvement Project (EIP) which began in 1989 and 1991 respectively. The PITO project, which ended in 1995, aimed at enhancing the development of ASEAN and providing benefits to US firms through increased trade and investment activities in the region.
Currently, the only ongoing development cooperation project under this Dialogue is the EIP. The main objective of the project is to promote private sector initiatives and to strengthen national and regional capabilities in ASEAN with emphasis on urban and industrial pollution. The project implementation was entrusted to the private sector and the Environment Improvement Project (EIP) Steering Committee meets once a year to consider the progress of the project. In 1995 this project was incorporated into the US-Asia Environmental Partnership Program (AEP).
At the 12th ASEAN-US Dialogue held in Washington D.C. in May 1995, the US indicated its interest in environmental cooperation with ASEAN. Several regional activities in the area of the environment have been initiated. The EIP is currently the only ASEAN-US development cooperation project. At the dialogue meeting ASEAN also raised the idea of social and cultural cooperation through cultural exchange programmes. More concrete suggestions in this regard were made during the 13th ASEAN-US Dialogue Meeting in Batam in October 1996.
Current ASEAN-US Relationship
The United States announced a new initiative called the ASEAN Cooperation Plan (ACP) on 1 August 2002 in Bandar Seri Begawan. As envisioned, cooperation activities will be undertaken in the following areas: information technology, agricultural biotechnology, health, disaster response, and training for the ASEAN Secretariat. Details of the activities are now being worked out.
The ASEAN Economic Ministers and US Trade Representative met for an informal consultation on 20 November 2002 in Manila. The economic ministers discussed the Enterprise for ASEAN Initiative (EAI), which was announced by the President of the United States during his meeting with some ASEAN leaders attending the APEC Summit in Los Cabos on 26 October 2002. ASEAN welcomed the EAI and proposed the formulation of a region-wide ASEAN-US Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) to be followed by bilateral FTAs between interested ASEAN Member Countries and the US. The US-ASEAN Business Council is continuing its key role in promoting US business interest in the ASEAN region.
The ASEAN Consultative Committee on Standards and Quality (ACCSQ) and the US Department of Commerce Meeting on Standards and Related Activities continue to implement the three-year ASEAN-US Action Plan (2001-2003) to Address Trade-Related Standards and Conformance Issues. The Fifth ACCSQ-Department of Commerce Meeting was held on 6 March 2003 in Brunei Darussalam.
The First ASEAN-US Informal Coordinating Mechanism Meeting was held on 28 March 2003 in Vientiane. The Meeting took stock of ASEAN-US development cooperation activities and planned future activities based on ACP. ASEAN and the US agreed to develop a work plan covering economic, political and development cooperation areas to give focus to the cooperation and to systematically implement the cooperation. ASEAN and the US will further hold consultations on capacity building and training for the ASEAN Secretariat and officials from the ASEAN National Secretariats in member countries.
ASEAN and the US have signed a Joint Declaration for Cooperation to Combat International Terrorism on 1 August 2002 in Bandar Seri Begawan.
