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Prime Minister John Key has joined a launch of Asian free trade talks – but made it clear he favours a US-backed deal. The East Asian Summit wrapped up in Phnom Penh yesterday with Asian leaders formally announcing a start to negotiations towards a Regional Comprehensive ...

Asean leaders yesterday failed again to form a common front towards geo-political disputes with China over the South China Sea as the Philippines vowed to continue shouting while Cambodia tried to contain discussions to the two immediate sides. The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations hoped ...

Premier Wen Jiabao said on Monday China supports pushing forward an Asian free-trade area, which will cover 28 percent of world’s total export volume. Previous reports said China is expected to make announcements on Tuesday in Phnom Penh that it will join the talks for the ...

Herewith the full text of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration adopted by Southeast Asian leaders Sunday: WE, the Heads of State/Government of the Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (hereinafter referred to as “ASEAN”), namely Brunei Darussalam, the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Republic of ...

The ASEAN+3 (China, Japan and South Korea) Summit was held here on Monday to discuss measures and actions to further enhance cooperation in the future. The Summit was made between the leaders of the ten-country ASEAN led by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and the leaders ...

PRIME Minister Julia Gillard is aiming for an ambitious trade agreement that not only covers ASEAN and its neighbours but leaves the door open for other entrants. Ms Gillard arrived in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh on Monday for the East Asia Summit, which is set ...

Southeast Asian nations displayed a rare show of unity on Sunday against China’s sweeping maritime claims, calling for the first formal talks with Beijing over a sea dispute that has raised tensions and exposed deep divisions in the region. As Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao arrived in ...

THE ten-member Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) is used to fending off “interference” by the West in the internal affairs of some of its members. In recent years the human-rights record of the regime in Myanmar has been the tenderest of these sore spots. ...

When Asia-Pacific leaders gather this weekend in Southeast Asia—a bright spot in a sputtering global economy—their Cambodian hosts may extend a warm welcome to U.S. President Barack Obama, but they will view officials from Beijing as old friends. Mr. Obama’s visit to Cambodia—this year’s host for ...

Cambodian authorities have disrupted several events held by nongovernmental organizations and have threatened to arrest anyone holding protests ahead of sensitive regional summits to be held in the capital Phnom Penh, rights groups said Wednesday. The Independent Democracy of Informal Economic Association (IDEA) said authorities in ...

The World Bank and Japan will promote Thailand as the insurance centre of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to help develop the industry in neighbouring countries and provide professional services to the more advanced economies. The move is also expected to upgrade the insurance ...

China is encouraged by growing cooperation with Asean countries and hopes to see even more development in China-Asean trade to generate benefits for both sides. Under the China-Asean Free Trade Agreement (Cafta) that went into effect on Jan 1, 2010, more than 7,000 products are now ...

Overseas Filipino workers in Hong Kong, Brunei and Cambodia who need to shuttle between these countries and the Philippines can now avail themselves of the multiple travel exit clearance (MTEC), according to the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). The Memorandum Circular No. 7 issued by POEA ...

A dispute over territory in the South China Sea is once again set to hang over talks when China and the U.S. join in on a week of high-level Asean meetings that start in Phnom Penh on Friday. So far, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has ...

A code of Conduct governing the South China Sea remains only an “eventual” prospect, Prime Minister Hun Sen said yesterday, despite it dominating discussions during this week’s ASEAN Summit. From the beginning of Monday’s Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, the question of China’s potential involvement in the drafting ...

Maybank launched yesterday its locally incorporated company in Cambodia, Maybank (Cambodia) Plc, and will also build a 10-storey corporate office with the aim of becoming one of the top five banks there by 2015. Currently ranked seventh in terms of assets among 33 banks operating ...

Phnom Penh — Cambodia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Hor Namhong and his Singapore’s counterpart K Shanmugam agreed on Wednesday that the territorial dispute in the South China Sea between China and some ASEAN countries should be solved peacefully. “We have exchanged ideas on the issue of ...

Thailand is reportedly preparing to re-enter negotiations with Cambodia on the Overlapping Claims Area after officials from the two countries talked this week at the ASEAN Energy Business Forum in Brunei. Thai Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan said yesterday that he met informally with Ministry of Industry ...

The World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Competitiveness Index 2011-2012 ranked the Philippines 75th out of 142 economies, up from 85th out of 139 in the 2010-2011 report. Last year’s placing marked a reversal of 2009’s slide to 87th in a list of 133, from 71st ...