1.
The 15th
ASEAN-Republic of Korea (ROK) Summit chaired by SamdechAkka Moha Sena Padei
Techo HUN SEN, Prime Minister of the Kingdom ofCambodia, was held in Phnom
Penh, Cambodia, on 19 November 2012. TheHeads of State/Government of the ASEAN
Member States had a productivemeeting with H.E. Mr. Lee Myung-bak, President of
the Republic of Korea.
2.
The ASEAN Leaders
expressed sincere appreciation to H.E. Mr. Lee Myung-bak for his active
contribution to expanding and strengthening ASEAN-ROK Strategic Partnership.
This has been his significant and invaluable personal contribution for the
purpose of promoting peace, security, and stability in the region and for
building close ties, friendship and cooperation between countries and peoples
of ASEAN and the Republic of Korea. The ASEAN Leaders also expressed optimism
that ASEAN-ROK Strategic Partnership will continue to be further enhanced and
deepened.
3.
We noted with
satisfaction the significant advancement of ASEAN-ROK cooperation over
the past 23 years, in particular following the elevation of
the ASEAN-ROK relations from comprehensive cooperation
to a strategic partnership in 2010. We also noted substantive progress made in
the implementation of the Joint Declaration on ASEAN-ROK Strategic Partnership
for Peace and Prosperity and its Plan of Action for 2011-2015.
4.
The ASEAN Leaders
appreciated the ROK’s unyielding support for ASEAN Community building efforts
and ASEAN’s central role in the evolving regional architecture. The ASEAN
Leaders also encouraged the ROK to support the implementation of the Roadmap
for an ASEAN Community (2009-2015), and the Phnom Penh Agenda for ASEAN
Community Building, which was adopted by the ASEAN Leaders at the 20th ASEAN
Summit in Phnom Penh, in April 2012.
5.
The ASEAN Leaders
welcomed the appointment of the first resident Ambassador of the ROK to ASEAN
and the establishment of the Mission of the ROK to ASEAN in Jakarta in
September 2012. They believed that the Mission of the ROK to ASEAN would
facilitate closer cooperation and mutual understanding between ASEAN and the
ROK.
6.
We attached great
importance to the role of the ASEAN-Korea Centre in Seoul in promoting trade,
investment, tourism and cultural exchanges between ASEAN and the ROK. We
encouraged the Centre to undertake more concrete activities including the
development of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in order to further promote
trade and investment for mutual benefits of ASEAN and the ROK. The ROK Leader
encouraged ASEAN Member States to second their officials to the Centre.
7.
The ROK welcomed
the adoption of the Declaration on Drug-Free ASEAN 2015 by the ASEAN Leaders at
the 20th ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh, in April 2012. In this regard, the ASEAN
Leaders looked forward to enhancing cooperation with the ROK to address the
trafficking of illegal drugs and narcotics.
8.
We welcomed the
adoption of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration at the 21st ASEAN Summit in
Phnom Penh on 18 November 2012 and emphasized our continuing support to realize
an ASEAN Community based upon adherence to rule of law, democracy, promotion
and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
9.
We welcomed the
significant growth of two-way trade between ASEAN and ROK, which amounted to
US$124.9 billion in 2011 compared with US$97.3 billion the previous year. In
this regard, we reaffirmed our commitment to achieve the target of US$150
billion two-way trade by 2015. For this purpose, we tasked our relevant Ministers
to implement concrete measures, including to fully implement the ASEAN-Korea
Free Trade Agreement (AKFTA) and to effectively utilize ASEAN–Korea Centre, to
enhance ASEAN-ROK economic linkages. We also encouraged (SMEs) to take full
advantages of the AKFTA.
10.
The ASEAN Leaders
appreciated the ROK’s strong commitment to support the implementation of the
Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity (MPAC). In this regard, the ASEAN Leaders
welcomed the ROK’s decision to establish a consultative mechanism to engage
with the ASEAN Connectivity Coordinating Committee (ACCC) to discuss practical
means to support the implementation of the MPAC, in particular in areas
relating to infrastructure development and information and communication
technology (ICT).
11.
We agreed to
further strengthen and enhance our mutually beneficial cooperation in the
fields such as education, disaster management, small and medium enterprises
(SMEs), migrant workers, water management, combating of transnational crimes
such as trafficking in persons, and post harvest technology, including food
storage, processing, preservation and distribution.
12.
We underscored
the importance of future generations in promoting ASEAN-ROK cooperation and
welcomed the ongoing and increased opportunities for youth exchange on a
regular basis.
13.
We reaffirmed our
commitment to actively cooperate in addressing major global and transboundary
challenges such as climate change and the environment. We are also keen in
close cooperation and exchanging best practices on “Low Carbon Green Growth
Policy” and the use of environmentfriendly technology. In this connection, we
welcomed the entry into force of the Agreement between ASEAN and the ROK on
Forest Cooperation and agreed to promote cooperation for the effective
implementation of the Agreement. The ASEAN Leaders also invited the ROK to
support the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster
Management (AHA Centre).They also welcomed the ROK's offer to co-host the ARF
Disaster Relief Exercise (DiReX) with Thailand in 2013.
14.
We attached great
importance to the Mekong-ROK cooperation in contributing to ASEAN’s endeavor to
enhance ASEAN connectivity and ASEAN Community building. We welcomed the good
outcomes of the 2nd Mekong-ROK Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held in Phnom Penh,
Cambodia, on 10 July 2012, in which both sides agreed to consider the
establishment of the “Mekong-ROK Cooperation Fund”, to carry out first several
pilot projects in the six priority areas and to come up with the “Mekong-ROK
Action Plan” in 2014, to hold the First Mekong-ROK Business Forum in Thailand
in 2013, and to designate the year 2014 as the “Mekong-ROK Exchange Year”. We
also agreed to task our relevant ministers and senior officials to fully and
timely implement the Han-River Declaration of the Establishment of the
Mekong-ROK Comprehensive Partnership for Mutual Prosperity, which was adopted
at the inaugural Mekong-ROK Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Seoul in October
2011.
15.
The ASEAN Leaders
congratulated the ROK for the successful hosting of the 2nd Nuclear Security
Summit, which was a milestone in the global efforts to ensure nuclear security
and prevent nuclear terrorism. In this regard, we looked forward to the
participation of ASEAN Chair in the future Nuclear Security Summit.
16.
We recognized the
importance of peace, stability and maritime security in the region. In this
connection, we stressed the need to strengthen maritime security cooperation
through the existing mechanism in order to maintain and promote peace and
stability in the region, amidst the growing security challenges such as sea
piracy, vessel accidents, oil spills, terrorism and natural disasters.
17.
We welcomed
Indonesia as the Country Coordinator for ASEAN-ROK Dialogue Relations from July
2012 to July 2015. We looked forward to enhancing the multi-faceted cooperation
and advancing the ASEAN-ROK strategic partnership to a higher level.