POLITICAL AND SECURITY COOPERATION
15. In the past year ASEAN sought greater international recognition for its declared principles and objectives pertaining to regional security. ASEAN took a step forward in the expansion of her membership with vietnam’s admission into the Asociation at the 28th ASEAN Ministers’ Meeting in Brunei Darussalam in July 1995. The same occasion saw Myamnar accede to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation while Cambodia and Laos have since been accorded Observer status. These develpments have brought ASEAN closer to the realization of the vision of embracing the whole Southeast Asia. The Association also expanded its process of political and security consultations and cooperation.
16. ASEAN has continued to play a central role in honing the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) into an effective and meaningful process for achieving peace and security in the Asia-Pacific region. The Second ARF Meeting was held on 1 August 1995 in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam. The Chairman's Statement noted the "many positive steps taken since the First ARF in Bangkok" and "the participants’ willingness to address substantive security issues in a spirit of mutual respect, equality and cooperation". The Second ARF agreed that while a successful ARF requires the active, and equal participation of all players, ASEAN would be the primary driving force, setting a pace comfortable to all. An evolutionary approach comprising three broad stages, the promotion of confidence building, the development of preventive diplomacy and the elaboration of approaches to conflicts, would be taken.
17. For the moment, the ARF will concentrate on confidence building, putting into place those aspects of preventive diplomacy where this can be done in tandem with the first stage. The ARF process would proceed along two tracks. Track One activities would be carried out by ARF governments while those of Track Two would come under the purview of strategic institutions and the relevant non-governmental organizations. The ARF agreed to set up the following groups: (I) Inter-sessional Support Group (ISG) on Confidence Building, in particular, dialogue on security perceptions and defence policy papers and (ii) Inter-sessional Meetings (ISMs) on Cooperative Activities including inter alia, Peacekeeping.
18. Since the Second ARF Meeting in Brunei Darussalam in August, several activities have taken place. Track 1 activities include the Inter-sessional Group (ISG) First and Second Workshops on Confidence-Building Measures held in Tokyo from 18-19 January 1996 and in Jakarta from 15-16 April 1996, respectively. Two ISMs have since been convened: the ISM on Search and Rescue Coordination and Cooperation held in Hawaii from 4 -7 March 1996 and the ISM on Peacekeeping Operations held in Kuala Lumpur from 1-3 April 1996. Under the Track 2 process, a Seminar on Principles of Security and Stability in the Asia-Pacific was held in Moscow from 23-24 April 1996. The reports of these meetings were presented to the ASEAN Regional Forum Senior Officials Meeting (ARF-SOM) from 10-11 May 1996 in Yogyakarta.
19. The preamble to the Treaty of Southeast Asia Nuclear-Weapon Free Zone states that "the establishment of a Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone, as an essential component of ZOPFAN, will contribute towards strengthening the security of States within the Zone and towards enhancing international peace and security as a whole". Each State Party pledges not to, anywhere inside or outside the Zone, develop, manufacture or otherwise acquire, possess or have control over nuclear weapons; station or transport nuclear weapons by any means; or test or use nuclear weapons. State Parties are now in the process of ratifying the Treaty in accordance with their constitutional procedures.
20. The Treaty provides for a Protocol which will be open for signature by the Nuclear Weapon States, namely, People's Republic of China, the French Republic, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Parties to the Protocol undertake, among others, not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against any State Party to the Treaty.