Today and tomorrow, the Prime Minister Janez Janša is attending the sixth Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM 6 Summit) in Helsinki. The meeting is attended by twenty-five EU member states, the European Commission, ten ASEAN countries, China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea. This year's summit is ASEM's tenth anniversary, and several events have been organised to commemorate the occasion. The aim of the summit meeting is to tackle the most important challenges both continents must face.
PHOTO: BOBO
During the course of ten years, the ASEM summit has grown to become a meeting where all issues can be raised and many solved. Against the backdrop of the meeting, a number of accompanying events are held which bring together parlamentarians and representatives of business and civil organisations.
"After a decade, we can see for the first time that the Summit, which at the beginning focused mainly on economic interests, has grown into a political meeting. The issues of the sixth summit are primarily security and protection against global risks, which know no state borders," said the Slovenian PM after the first day's proceedings.
The topic of the first plenary meeting of Presidents and Prime Ministers was multilateralism. The discussion focused on the future role of the UN, with regard to which the EU and Asian countries agreed that the organisation should maintain its leading role in accordance with international law. The role, however, should be more effective, and the UN should strive for greater authority. According to the Slovenian PM, the participants also raised several issues pertaining to the latest global incidents. Among other things, they discussed North Korea's most recent missile test.
PHOTO: BOBO
Presidents and Prime Ministers also take the opportunity to coordinate some of the current issues regarding the EU. Apart from the regular topic of the last few months – the European constitution – Schengen candidates are concerned that the enlargement may be postponed, as some technical preparations are behind schedule. Mr Janša expressed the hope that the delay would not be too significant, and added that he did not believe that the problem lay solely in technical difficulties. "Those who assumed the responsibility to ensure this, must fulfil their commitment. It is not insignificant that the candidate countries have invested considerable financial and human resources to ensure timely preparations. Had we known at the beginning that the process could stall, we would have begun the preparations later, which would have reduced the cost of the project," said the Prime Minister.
The Summit will also be an opportunity for bilateral meetings. Prime Minister Janša will meet the Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, and the Prime Minister of the People's Republic of China, Wen Jiabao. Slovenia is particularly interested in business cooperation with China, which is our biggest trading partner in Asia, and with which we have recently signed a new Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation. At a bilateral meeting, both Prime Ministers will continue the dialogue, "as we seek to further improve our cooperation through higher levels of cooperation related to renewable sources of energy, which are of particular interest to Slovenia," said Mr Janša. Both PMs are also expected to exchange views on current global issues, such as North Korea and Iran. As Slovenia is soon to take over the Chair of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), she is particularly interested in exchanging views in this field.
In the evening, Mr Janša attended a dinner hosted by the President of the Republic of Finland, Tarja Halonen. The dinner was an opportunity to discuss current issues, including the use of nuclear energy in Iran, and the efforts of the international community to ensure that the peaceful use of nuclear energy does not lead to uncontrolled nuclear armament.
