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In a move that frontally pits the leaders of Asean
against the President and State Department of the United States, its
oldest and most powerful ally and supporter, the 10-nation
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) on Tuesday called for
the withdrawal of all foreign troops from Iraq.
Asean said it was the way to
bring back normality to the Civil War-wracked Arab country.
A joint communiqué of the
foreign ministers at the end of their two-day 40th Asean Ministerial
Meeting held at the Philippine International Convention Center, said
they were deeply concerned over the continued instability in Iraq
even if they reaffirmed their support for the US-backed Iraqi
government and its efforts to ensure unity, security, stability, and
prosperity in Iraq.
“Toward this end, we believe
that the phased and calibrated withdrawal of foreign forces in Iraq,
taking into account the conditions on the ground, will contribute
towards bringing normalcy,” the foreign ministers said.
They said that they welcomed the
“outcomes” of the international meetings in Baghdad and Sharm
El-Sheikh aimed at expediting national reconciliation and
reconstruction that are crucial to the attainment of peace, security
and development in Iraq.
The foreign ministers also
expressed deep concern over the situation in the Middle East, saying
that there is a need for substantial progress in the quest for a
just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East.
“We welcomed the Quartet’s
[the USA, the UK, Russia and the UN] reaffirmation of their
commitments made in Lisbon on July 19, 2007, to bring an end to the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict and to undertake serious efforts
towards the establishment of an independent, democratic, and viable
Palestinian state living side by side with Israel,” the foreign
ministers said.
The Asean foreign ministers said
that foreign troop withdrawal is a step toward a comprehensive,
just, and lasting peace in the Middle East, consistent with the
Roadmap [which was largely authored in past years mainly by
President Bush] and UN Security Council resolutions.
“We express hope that the
Palestinians would be able to forge unity among themselves in
pursuit of these objectives,” the foreign ministers said.
The US Secretary of State,
Condoleezza Rice, was so busy taking the lead in forging a new
Middle East peace initiative that she could not come to the
Philippines and join the foreign ministers of Asean and its partner
countries, of which the USA is the principal one. Deputy US
Secretary of State John D. Negroponte is, however, here.
A. Malinao and Manila Times
staff
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