45th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting Kicks off in Cambodia:

External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna is participating in the 10th ASEAN-India ministerial meeting, the 2nd East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers meeting and the 19th ASEAN Regional Forum ministerial meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, from July 11 to 12. ASEAN-India ministerial meeting is an annual meet and takes stock of the ASEAN-India partnership and deliberates on its future direction. India became a sectoral partner of ASEAN in 1992.Later a Dialogue Partner in 1996  relationship  upgraded in 2002 to the level of an Annual Summit Level Partnership. Nine ASEAN-India Summits have been held since then.
10th ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers Meeting acquires greater significance, as India would be hosting a Special ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit in December 20-21, 2012 to mark twenty years of the Relationship and 10 years of the Summit level Partnership.

 Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen addressed inaugural 45th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting (AMM) and said Cambodia is honored to host this important meeting as, in one hand, it coincides with the celebration of the 45^th Anniversary of ASEAN, on the other hand, it is convened amidst ASEAN’s ongoing efforts toward building the ASEAN Community by 2015.

After 45 years, ASEAN today has become a closely-integrated political and economic entity, an influential player in Asia and an indispensable strategic partner of major countries and organizations in the world.

45th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting that ckicked off in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Monday, focusing on politics, security, food and energy security, economics and culture in order to further advance the bloc's cooperation toward a community by 2015. Addressing  at the opening session of the meeting at the Peace Palace, Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen said that the meeting coincided with the celebration of the 45th anniversary of ASEAN and it was convened amid ASEAN's ongoing efforts toward building the ASEAN Community by 2015.He said that after 45 years, ASEAN has become a closely- integrated political and economic entity, "an influential player in Asia and an indispensable strategic partner of major countries and organizations in the world."

"The ASEAN achievements recorded to date are enormous and of great importance," he said. "Those achievements underline the strong commitment and political will of ASEAN to continue working closely together in the ASEAN spirit of unity and solidarity, friendship and cooperation."

 ASEAN still continues to face challenges both globally and regionally such as the fragility of the economic recovery of developed countries, coupled with prolonged severe debt crisis in Europe, the ongoing social and political turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa, high oil prices, food and energy security, disasters, and terrorism and trans-national crimes.

"These still pose a great threat to the sustainability of socio-economic development of ASEAN achieved over the last four decades and the success of our effort towards realizing a full ASEAN Community in 2015," said Hun Sen.

Cambodian deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said at the opening remarks that ASEAN has been making steady progress in consolidating solidarity and unity within ASEAN and in deepening cooperation with all dialogue partners in order to build an economically sound and socially vibrant ASEAN Community, as well as contributing to peace and prosperity in the region.

Apart from the 45th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting, the Post- Ministerial Conferences, the 19th ASEAN Regional Forum and the 2nd East Asia Summit (EAS) Foreign Ministers Meeting will also be held until July 13.

At the end of the 45th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting, there will be a signing ceremony on the ASEAN Statement on the Protocol to the Treaty of Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ) and a Joint Communiqu will be adopted.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)group Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

A territorial dispute over islands in the South China Sea will be high on the agenda when the Association of Southeast Asian Nations meets in Cambodia this week.The talks open on Monday in the capital Phnom Penh among ASEAN foreign ministers. On Thursday, a meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum will be held, including delegates from the US and North Korea.

Participants will discuss the territorial dispute between China and southeastern countries, such as the Philippines and Viet Nam.ASEAN members aim to create a legally binding rule in order to settle the dispute with China in a peaceful manner. On Wednesday they hope to reach an agreement with China to start negotiations. But China intends to solve the problem by negotiating directly with the other two countries. Indonesia's foreign minister saying he expected to see movement on efforts to draft guidelines to resolve disputes in the sea."If not now, when? I mean, this is what we are here for," Marty Natalegawa told reporters in Phnom Penh on Sunday.Manila is leading a push for ASEAN to unite to persuade China to accept a "code of conduct" (COC) in the sea, where tensions have flared recently with both Vietnam and the Philippines accusing Beijing of aggressive behaviour. China has preferred an approach that would deal with the claimants individually."We will be discussing where we are and how to proceed, as to when for example to engage China in the process of formulating this code of conduct," Natalegawa said, adding that "recent developments" in the sea would also be on the agenda.

China, Taiwan and ASEAN members the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei and Malaysia have overlapping territorial claims in the South China Sea, home to vital shipping lanes and believed to be rich in oil and gas deposits.China recently angered Vietnam by inviting bids for exploration of oil blocks in contested waters, sparking protests in Hanoi, while Beijing and Manila are locked in a tense standoff over a disputed shoal.Media agecnies