On behalf of my ASEAN Colleagues, I would like to welcome our dialogue partners to this year's Post Ministerial Conferences.

Our dialogue relations now cover not only development cooperation but also economic, political and security matters and we regard this enhancement of our consultations at both Ministerial and Senior Officials’ levels as a clear sign that the Post Ministerial Conferences continue to make a, most valuable contribution to ASEAN's work.

Above all, they assist us in formulating effective responses to developments which we feel are beginning to characterise the Post Cold War era.

I refer, specifically to certain troubling aspects of international affairs which we have seen emerging and whose impact we are beginning to experience. We face growing levels of competitiveness in trade. We feel new pressures as a result of rapid globalisation and increased interdependence. There are profound social and environmental questions to answer and great worldwide debates on human rights, democracy and development to enter. Facing such challenges, we especially recognize the potential they all have for creating divisiveness among friends and partners. Nevertheless, they have to be addressed and we feel that this can best be done in the tried and tested way ASEAN has, developed since our first PMC in 1976.

This is why we see the PMC as being extremely important. It is our mechanism for handling change.

It constitutes a progress which will enable us to go further than mere discussion or consultation, beyond friendly pleasantries and address substantive issues of direct concern to us. Since the nature of our relations is policy oriented, working together as we face up to the kind of problems I have mentioned is essential. We believe that it is in this manner that we can begin to turn the economic dynamism we have managed to produce into shared prosperity. Our contribution to broadening the scope of international relations will, we hope, provide us the necessary confidence to devise and implement sound polices designed to offer our people a better future.

For all these reasons, therefore, ASEAN continues to place great value on the Post Ministerial Conferences. Their expansion through the establishment of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) accords them even greater importance as we now have more opportunities to discuss substantive issues. The PMC allows us to explore many areas not covered in our other meetings. Hence, we will continue to develop our future relations around this process. We look forward to another excellent round of deliberations today and tomorrow in the traditional PMC spirit of friendliness, partnership and cooperation.