ASEAN CHARTER ON TRACK, INCREASED DIALOGUE WITH U.S. URGED

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 002436 SIPDIS SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPT PASS USTR FOR KATZ AND BROOKS DEPT FOR EAP/RSP and EAP/MTS DEPT FOR EB/IFD/OMA DEPT ALSO FOR OES/IET AND OES/ETC/TED TREASURY FOR IA-SETH SEARLS COMMERCE FOR 4430/GOLIKE E.O. 12598: N/A TAGS: ECON ETRD PHUM PREL PGOV ID SUBJECT: ASEAN CHARTER ON TRACK, INCREASED DIALOGUE WITH U.S. URGED ¶1. (SBU) Summary. DAS Marciel emphasized U.S. interest in engaging ASEAN during meetings August 27-28 with ASEAN Deputy Secretary General Nicholas Dammen and Indonesian Foreign Ministry Director General for ASEAN Mr. Dian Triansyah Djani. The officials underscored that ASEAN is entering a qualitatively different era: it has finalized the economic blueprint and will have a Charter ready for signature by the ASEAN Summit in November. They called for increased cooperation and dialogue, regretted the delay in the U.S.-ASEAN Commemorative Summit, and expressed hope that ASEAN can influence positive movement in Burma. End Summary. Get on Board: ASEAN Charter, Economic Integration on Track -------------- -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) Scot Marciel underscored U.S. interest in ASEAN when he met August 27-28 with ASEAN Deputy Secretary General (DSG) Nicholas Dammen and Indonesian Foreign SIPDIS Ministry Director General for ASEAN Mr. Dian Triansyah Djani. They both welcomed U.S. engagement and underscored that ASEAN is entering a qualitatively different era. Both officials were certain that ASEAN will have a Charter ready for signature at the ASEAN Summit in Singapore in November. DG Djani, however, noted that member countries are still deliberating over the Charter's chapter on ASEAN as an organization (structure, size, competencies). DG Djani asserted that "now is the time to bet on ASEAN", both politically and economically, and that the E.U., Japan, and others were acknowledging this by negotiating FTAs with ASEAN. Djani also asserted, "ASEAN is the cornerstone of Indonesia's foreign policy". ¶3. (SBU) DSG Dammen confirmed that the ASEAN Economic Ministers Meeting finalized the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint for November) in Manila last week. He noted that ASEAN has to be flexible during economic integration toward ASEAN's second tier countries (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam),but that any FTA has to include all 10 member countries. Dammen commented that ASEAN would like an FTA with the U.S., which DAS Marciel noted would be a very difficult and detailed process if undertaken. When DAS Marciel asked whether ASEAN is interested in an Asia-Pacific FTA, Dammen informed him that ASEAN has not yet discussed the idea seriously. Dammen also suggested that negotiating current and future FTAs would help move ASEAN eventually to a customs union. He acknowledged, however, that ASEAN first has to improve its overall investment climate, including for intra-ASEAN investment, for example in telecommunications. Let's Ramp up Dialogue: the Commemorative Summit and ICM -------------- -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Both officials wanted to know when and where the U.S.-ASEAN Commemorative Summit would take place. DSG Dammen suggested that they preferred a U.S. location but emphasized that having the Summit is the most important thing (not the location). DG Djani noted that the Summit would help maintain momentum in U.S.-ASEAN relations. They both emphasized the importance of people-to-people contacts, including through scholarship programs like the Fulbright. DAS Marciel affirmed USG commitment to continue developing its substantive program of cooperation with ASEAN, and stressed that we are continuing to explore possible dates and locations for the Summit. Democracy in ASEAN, Burma -------------- ¶5. (SBU) DAS Marciel praised the dynamism of the region as a whole (including progress on the Charter),with the notable exception of Burma. He stressed the importance of ASEAN as a whole, as well as individual ASEAN countries, continuing to press the regime for progress. DG Djani emphasized Indonesia's commitment to democracy and admitted that ASEAN's constructive engagement with Burma's rulers has been difficult. He expressed optimism, however, about ASEAN's continuing engagement with Burma on the issue of democratic reform, noting that sanctions cannot change the regime and that the recent agreement on a human rights mechanism for the Charter shows JAKARTA 00002436 002 OF 002 how ASEAN can influence its constituent countries. Both Djani and DSG Dammen noted that ASEAN would continue to be consensus-driven, but that this can also influence positive change. ¶6. (U) DAS Marciel has cleared this telegram. HUME