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ASEAN Opens Annual Summit in Bali
November 17, 2011

From left to right, Philippines From left to right, Philippines' Presidential Spokesman Ricky Carandang, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Thailand's Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen, Brunei's Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah, Lao's Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong, Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Tun Rajak and Burma's President U Thein Sein during a photo session shortly after the opening ceremony of the 19th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Nusa Dua, Bali on Thursday. (EPA Photo/Mast Irham)
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Nusa Dua. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations on Thursday opened a summit on the Indonesian island of Bali, expected to tackle issues including maritime disputes and reform in Burma.

Opening the meeting, the host nation’s President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said that the 10-nation ASEAN “wishes to play a greater role in the affairs of the world, to reach out to the world.”

In an apparent reference to the South China Sea, where China is embroiled in disputes with several members of the bloc, he said: “We must ensure the stability and security of our region.

“ASEAN must continue to play a proactive role to facilitate and engage itself in the resolution of issues.”

The leaders are set to discuss Burma’s bid to host the grouping in 2014, which ASEAN’s foreign ministers backed this week, saying it was a reward for reform gestures from the new military-backed government.

“We must continue to engage all leaders in the region,” Yudhoyono said.

On Saturday the meeting will widen into the East Asia Summit, which also takes in Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand, and this year welcomes new members the United States and Russia.

In recent days Beijing and Washington have traded warnings over the handling of the South China Sea territorial wrangle, setting the stage for a confrontation in Bali.

Agence France-Presse