By Xinhua
Manila : The first draft of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Charter, a basic legal document for the regional body, will be presented at the 40th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM), an organizer said here Friday.
Building the ASEAN community will be a top priority for the 10 Southeast Asian countries until 2015, Luis T. Cruz, the AMM's deputy secretary-general said at a press briefing at the Philippine International Convention Center, where the meeting is scheduled to be held on July 31.
The High Level Task Force on the ASEAN Charter will hold the 8th meeting of their own, after which they are expected to come up with the first draft of ASEAN Charter, Cruz said, adding that the draft will be presented to the foreign ministers from 10 ASEAN countries for discussion on their meeting in Manila.
The ASEAN Charter will be a legal and institutional framework for the regional body which wants to develop its common norm, rules and values among the members as an international "legal person" similar to that of the European Union, according to Cruz.
The ASEAN+3 meetings, which involves China, Japan and South Korea, will also celebrate the 10th anniversary of the dialogue mechanism. The ASEAN+3 partners are set to discuss a draft of the 2nd Joint Declaration Statement on East Asia Cooperation, he said.
A total of 27 countries, including the ASEAN members, will send their delegates to the AMM meetings, the ASEAN + 10 meetings as well as the ASEAN Regional Forum meetings, the organizer told reporters.
The ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The Philippines is the current chair of the grouping.