The Third Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) Foreign Ministers' Meeting
(Summary)

1. On June 21 and 22, 2004, the Third Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) Foreign Ministers' Meeting was convened in Qingdao, China. The Foreign Ministers from 19 of the 22 member countries of the ACD were present, with the remaining three being represented by heads of delegation. The Meeting concluded with the adoption of two documents, the "Declaration on Asian Cooperation" and the "Qingdao Initiative" which sets out cooperation in the energy sector.
2. Summary of Meeting

   (1) The meeting was convened in the form of a retreat, in which only foreign ministers and other heads of delegation took part.

   (2) Agenda issues included: (a) new membership; (b) the host country for the next meeting; (c) exchange of views on regional and international political and economic situations; (d) implementation status of the Prime Mover Projects; and (e) adoption of the "Declaration" and "Qingdao Initiative".

   (3) As a result of discussion on agenda items, (a) it was agreed to admit three new members: Islamic Republic of Iran, Mongolia and the United Arab Emirates; (b) it was decided to convene the ACD meeting in 2005 in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and the 2006 meeting in the State of Qatar; (c) although exchange of views on regional and international situation took place in a closed setting, it was decided to make a statement condemning terrorism and the abduction of ordinary citizens, which was announced by Dr. Surakiat Sathianthai, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, the coordinating country of the ACD, at the press conference jointly held with Mr. Li Zhaoxing, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China (PRC), chair of the meeting; and (d) Dr. Surakiat gave a comprehensive explanation on the status of implementation of the Prime Mover Projects, and Ms. Kawaguchi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, mentioned the strengthening legal infrastructure and "environmental education" undertaken by Japan, noting the significance of environmental education implemented jointly with the participation of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and international organizations.

   (4) Summary of the Declaration

   (a) The Declaration of Asian Cooperation sets out 13 areas for priority action by the ACD (policy dialogue, economy and the WTO, agriculture, financial services, IT, energy, cultural exchange, tourism, environment, public health and disease control and prevention, media, industry-government-academia cooperation, and person-to-person exchanges).

   (b) The "Qingdao Initiative" covers regional energy cooperation, on 11 areas among ACD members.