ARF ministers to adopt rules to enhance role of the chair

Medardo C. Abad, head of the ARF secretariat and spokesman for the ASEAN secretariat, said the establishment of the so-called Terms of Reference of the Friends of the ARF Chair, or FOC, ''signals a consensus that the ARF should now graduate from conference diplomacy and become a proactive mechanism in responding to security situations that cannot wait for scheduled meetings.''

''It would build on the current level of confidence that has been generated so far among the ARF members. It would further promote confidence through actual problem-solving and not just by exchanging views,'' Abad said. ''It would respond to situations before they become violent or armed confrontations. It could also address situations that threaten human security like acts of terrorism or even natural or human induced disasters.''

The ARF ministers are expected to adopt it Thursday after more than two years of negotiations. They will hold their annual meeting on the day.

The FOC is an ad-hoc group, constituted for a specific task by the ARF chair as and when the situation arises, including in times of emergency and crisis that have the likelihood of disturbing regional peace and stability.

The FOC is a troika composed of the foreign minister of the incoming ARF chairing country, the foreign minister of a non-ASEAN ARF country and the foreign minister of the immediate past ARF chairing country.

''The FOC is primarily focused on confidence-building and shall not be intervention-oriented,'' said Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Erlinda Basilio, chair of a two-day ASEAN senior officials meeting from Friday Basilio said the FOC may advise the chair in the performance of its good offices role and in facilitating discussions and negotiations on issues of critical significance for regional peace and security.

She stressed the FOC is an ad-hoc group to support and assist the ARF chair, not a decision-making body.

''It is only an advisory body. It is not intended to represent the ARF chair beyond the specific tasks assigned to it,'' Basilio said.

A draft document says the FOC shall carry our its work ''in accordance with the United Nations Charter and consistent with the purposes and principles of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, and in particular the core principles of consensus, respect for national sovereignty, and noninterference in the domestic affairs of one another.''

     The document outlines the procedure how the ARF chair will go about in convening the FOC.

The ARF chair will inform ARF countries before deciding when a situation warrants the constitution and convening of the FOC, it says.

In discharging its mandate, it says the FOC will report and make recommendations to the ARF chair. The ARF chair then decides on the next step to take.

The document says the FOC may meet as often as necessary, and that it will be reviewed for possible amendments and revisions when and if the need arises.

''Any amendments and revisions shall be made on the basis of consensus of all ARF participating countries,'' it says.

Among the topics to be discussed is the proposed establishment of a regular Inter-Sessional Meeting on Non-Proliferation and Disarmament.

When established, it could potentially give ARF a more active role in such issues as nuclear proliferation on the Korean Peninsula and in the Middle East.

ARF is the only multilateral security dialogue in the Asia-Pacific region participated in by North Korea.

ARF comprises the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam -- plus Australia, Canada, the European Union, New Zealand, the United

States, Russia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor, Pakistan, North Korea and South Korea, Mongolia, Bangladesh, Japan, China and India.

Sri Lanka is to be admitted to the forum Aug 1, the day before the ARF ministers meet.//Kyodo News