Good afternoon.
The regular 17th East Asia Summit (EAS) has come to an end. Most of the countries participating in this format were represented at the highest level, with some states represented by ministers and special representatives.
The discussion confirmed our analysis of the processes that have unfolded over time in the region. The Asia-Pacific space has evolved for decades on the basis of ASEAN initiatives, around which an inclusive, open and equal structure of security and cooperation has taken shape.
The U.S. and its allies, as well as the North Atlantic Alliance, are now trying to “master” this space. Recently the concept of Indo-Pacific strategies has been put forward, which promotes formats that are by no means open to all comers. Moreover, they compete with the inclusive structures created around ASEAN and involve the militarization of the region with the obvious aim of containing China and Russian interests in the APAC. Everyone understands this. One concrete example of this line was the creation of the military bloc AUKUS (the United States, Australia and Britain), into which they are now actively trying to draw New Zealand, Canada and Japan. Closed initiatives to organize observation of maritime activities are being promoted. People who know what they are talking about directly link this to the “need” for confrontational actions by the West in the South China Sea.
Our friends in China are well aware of this. Together with them, we defend the expediency and necessity of preserving the formats created around ASEAN, respecting the central role played by the Association in the processes taking place in the region around it.
The West has its own agenda. This has been made quite clear today. Everybody pays lip service to the role of ASEAN. In fact, they bend their line and promote confrontational mechanisms and tools. NATO no longer claims to be a purely defensive alliance. It was so when the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact existed. The NATO has already several times moved its “line of defense” (there is no longer the Warsaw Pact or the Soviet Union – it is not clear from whom they were defending) close to our borders. At the NATO summit in Madrid in the summer of this year, they declared that they have “global responsibility”, that the security of the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific region are indivisible. Westerners claim to play a leading role here. They are already shifting their “line of defense” to the South China Sea. There is a tendency to militarize the region by aligning the efforts of U.S. allies – Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the expansion of NATO presence in the APAC.
We have said it all frankly. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has laid out his assessments in line with ours. Unfortunately, this is unlikely to make the U.S. and its allies take into account the interests of most of the countries in the region. We will continue to convey our position, which meets with understanding within ASEAN. There is still no consensus within the Association on how to proceed in the area of security in the region. If the goal is to sow doubt in the ranks of ASEAN and try to undermine their monolithy, the Americans are achieving their goals. Nevertheless, most members of the Association have taken a stand to defend their interests. We are talking about non-subordination of ASEAN actions to the interests of extra-regional players. Our partners appreciate the position of Russia and China in favor of preserving the central role of the Association.
Having outlined the principal assessments, we emphasized the unambiguous priority for us not in polemical discussions, but in the promotion within the EAC of specific interaction projects. Two years ago, one of the summits adopted a Russian project to develop cooperation to combat pandemic threats. In practical terms, this decision has not yet begun to be implemented. Reiterated today the need for a meeting of professional representatives of all countries of the East Asia Summit on this problem.
We reiterated the initiative to promote tourism in this part of the world, which we voiced earlier at EAC events. It is very important for the interests of ASEAN economies in the post-pandemic period.
Today, another Russian initiative has received support – to develop the volunteer movement, the organization of contacts between volunteer organizations of the EAC member countries as a contribution to the solution of problems of involving civil society in the promotion of humanitarian contacts.
No collective decisions were made at the summit because the U.S. and its Western colleagues insisted on absolutely unacceptable language regarding the situation in and around Ukraine. Everything I am talking about, including directions for further cooperation, will be reflected in the communiqué that the Cambodian presidency will issue on its behalf.
