Asia, Europe to boost social, cultural exchanges

The 3rd ASEM Summit on Saturday took up social and cultural issues and approved the Asia-Europe Cooperative Framework 2000 and the chairman's statement. The leaders present talked over measures to work together for the promotion of cultural, intellectual and personnel exchanges and resolution of related transnational problems based upon the foundation laid by the Seoul meeting. The direction and priorities of cooperation between Asia and Europe over the coming decade were set forth in the AECF 2000 document. Established in 1996, ASEM has now come to assume a central role in boosting meaningful ties between Asia and Europe. The chairman's statement, which covered a range of issues concerning globalization, will provide fresh momentum to a set of projects involving information and communications, transnational crimes, development of human resources and the environment.

Closer personnel exchanges between the two continents were the focus of attention during the last day's conference. The participants agreed to increase exchanges of students, educators and scholars with a view to enhancing mutual understanding between the two regions through multifaceted exchanges in social and cultural fields. An ASEM scholarship program jointly proposed by Korean President Kim Dae-Jung and French President Jacques Chirac was adopted as a new project to encourage exchanges of students and professors of all member countries. Seoul, where the program secretariat is to be located, should play a leading role in the proposed educational exchanges between Asia and Europe.