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Emerging Asia looking for bigger role
By Xu Binglan (China Daily)
Updated: 2005-04-22 06:30
In the hustle and bustle of the world stage, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's
visit to India earlier this month had some special significance for geopolitics
observers.
A strategic partnership between the two most populous nations, two rapidly
growing economies and two of the oldest civilizations in the world is an
historic issue by anyone's standards.
Long Yongtu,
secretary general of Boao Forum for Asia, and other directors of the forum
walk to a conference room for a meeting in Boao, Hainan
Province April 21, 2005. The theme of this year's forum is new role
of Asia. [newsphoto] | An amiable atmosphere has already surrounded much of East Asia and something
similar is gradually brewing in South Asia.
Now a warm handshake between the two biggest countries in the region
naturally leads to the anticipation of more co-operative steps.
Stretching the imagination further still, the eventual formation of Asia's
answer to the European Union could be on the cards in the future.
For the moment, the partnership between China and India is not only important
for the two countries, but also "adds weight to the role of the entire
continent," said Zhai Kun, a senior fellow with the China Institute of
Contemporary International Relations (CICIR).
But what is Asia's role in the world?
This is exactly the question that political, business and opinion leaders
will ponder in the annual conference of the Boao Forum for Asia. The theme of
the conference is the New Role of Asia.
"More economic activities are taking place in Asia than in any other area.
Growth rates here have outpaced elsewhere. This naturally leads to attention on
Asia," said Long Yongtu, secretary-general of the forum.
"We should have an appropriate assessment of what kind and how big a role
Asia can play," Long added.
"We should not overstate it, nor should we understate it."
To Zhang Yunling, director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' (CASS)
Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies, Asia's new role is two-fold.
It is first and foremost economic.
Economic power
In fact, Asia's rise on the world stage started with the so-called "Asian
miracle" - the economic success of Japan and then the small "dragons" and
"tigers" such as South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore and Thailand.
The burst of the economic bubble in Japan and the 1997-98 Asian financial
crisis cast a shadow over Asia's success story, but most East Asian economies
quickly returned to growth again.
And China's rapid emergence as an economic power on the world stage adds much
to East Asia's attractiveness.
Now India, after decades of slow growth, is also catching up.
Both China and India are growing at rates faster than almost all the other
major economies in the world in recent years.
The Indian economy is smaller than China's. But given India's size and
influence, the emergence of its economic power on the continent is fundamentally
changing Asia's position in the world, said CASS' Zhang.
The prospects of a triad of Japan, China and India will make Asia a vital
engine for the world economy.
Zhang said the new role of Asia is also that of a more prominent global
player in international relations, a player that can be the peer of the European
Union and the United States.
Starting from escalating co-operative steps in East Asia, regional
co-operation is gaining momentum across the whole continent.
Official dialogue between the 10-member ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian
Nations) and China, Japan and the Republic of Korea was launched in 1997.
The dialogue has progressed well and created a favourable environment for all
sorts of regional co-operation.
Now the 10 plus 3 meeting is evolving into a meeting of 13 members, which is
scheduled to have its first East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur late this year.
The smooth progress has interested some neighbours. Both India and Australia
have expressed an interest in joining co-operation in East Asia.
The co-operation in this area is not only about the emergence of a unified
regional player, but also about the introduction of the "Asian approach,"
CICIR's Zhai Kun said.
Although they still have unsettled disputes on issues such as territory and
history, they can put them aside while beginning to sit down together to talk
about co-operation in other areas.
"Instead of resolving the problems right from the start, they tend to create
a favourable atmosphere first then co-operate in certain areas while tackling
the real thorny issues step by step," Zhai said.
Despite territorial disputes among China, Viet Nam and the Philippines over
South China Sea, they recently agreed to put the disputes aside first and
explore natural resources there together.
In terms of development, Asia can also provide experience for developing
countries in other continents, such as Africa.
Asian and African leaders gathered this week in Indonesia to talk about ways
to face challenges in the era of globalization. Asian countries are generally
more successful in developing their economies and can share their experiences
with Africa.
"So you see, Asia also has a role in its relation to Africa to play," Zhai
said.
Japan's role
Japan's integration with Asia will be an important part in the process of
Asia developing its new role.
Japan, now the biggest economy in Asia, is closer to the Western world in
terms of politics and economic systems.
The increasing significance of Asia has prompted Japan to start "returning to
Asia."
However, as Japan has spent decades becoming a "Western country," it will be
a long process for it to become a real Asian country again, said CASS' Zhang.
A key problem for Japan is its attitude towards its history of invading other
Asian countries, which makes Asian countries worry about the revival of its
militarism. This undermines Asian nations' trust of Japan.
In addition, Japan, after being the sole leading economic engine in Asia for
decades, also needs to make adjustments and accept the reality of the emergence
of China and India as new economic powers.
The two issues every now and then emerge to strain relations between Japan
and others. The latest dispute between Japan and other Asian countries over
history textbooks is an example.
However, Japan's often uneasy relationships with other Asian countries are
not the only obstacle for Asia in its pursuit of a more prosperous and
harmonious community.
One look around will find that there are still lots of problems. In the
north, the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula has not been solved; in the
south, there are a series of places still involved in territorial disputes.
In terms of economic development, all countries in the region, including
China, Japan and India, still face a myriad of challenges.
"Asia still has a long way to go," said CICIR's Zhai.
(China Daily 04/22/2005 page2)
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