The Network of
East Asian Think-Tanks or "NEAT" as it is usually known was a
recommendation of the East Asian Studies Group (2002) set up by
the ASEAN Plus Three (APT) Summit. It is a grouping of 13
government-designated organizations, one from each APT country.
It is approximately 4 years old, and has held Annual Conferences
in China (2003), Thailand (2004), Japan (2005) and Malaysia
(2006).
Serve as a ‘Track Two’ (i.e. academic/research institutes) process for APT or East Asian
cooperation,
Pool together academic/research
institutes resources of the APT countries to provide
intellectual support for East Asian cooperation,
Study issues and initiatives identified
by the APT Summit or other levels of meetings and give
policy recommendations to the APT meetings,
Study issues and carry out joint
research concerning East Asian cooperation in key areas,
including strategic and emerging issues concerning the
overall situation and the future direction of East Asian
cooperation,
Produce and disseminate NEAT
publications, and
Establish linkages with ‘Track One’
(i.e. official/ governmental) of APT and with other
institutions and organizations.
• Brunei Darussalam Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Brunei; • General Department of ASEAN, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
International Cooperation, Cambodia; • Center for East Asian Studies, China Foreign Affairs
University, China, • Center for East Asian Cooperation Studies, Indonesia; • The Japan Forum on International Relations, Inc. Japan; • Korean Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (KISEAS), Korea; • Institute of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Laos, • Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS)
Malaysia; • Myanmar Institute of Strategic and International Studies (MISIS),
Myanmar; • Philippine Institute for Development Studies, Philippines; • East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore,
Singapore; • Institute of East Asian Studies, Thammasat University,
Thailand; and • Institute for International Relations, Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, Vietnam
The key output from the NEAT process is the “Policy
Recommendations” to the APT meetings. The “Policy
Recommendations” themselves are culled from a series of Working
Groups convened every year. Each NEAT country has a fair and
equal opportunity to host a Working Group. All Working Groups
must be approved by the NEAT Country Coordinators collectively.
Thus far, the Working Groups have been:
Working Group
Host
Year(s)
East Asian Financial Cooperation
NEAT China
2005 & 2006
East Asian Investment Cooperation
NEAT China
2005 & 2006
Overall Architecture of Community
Building in East Asia
NEAT Japan
2005
Promoting Economic Integration in
Asia through Resolving New Global Imbalances
NEAT Japan
2005
Overall Architecture of Community
Building in East Asia (Regional Architectures for
Non-Traditional Security and Environmental Cooperation
in East Asia)
NEAT Japan
2006
Intra-Regional Exchange Rate
Stability and the Prevention of Financial Crisis in East
Asia
NEAT Japan
2006
Trade-FDI-Technology in East Asia
NEAT Japan
2006
Concepts, Ideas and Empowering
Guidelines for East Asia
NEAT Malaysia
2005
Energy Security Cooperation in East
Asia
NEAT Singapore
2005 & 2006
NEAT also has a website, hosted by NEAT China, at
www.neat.org.cn
NEAT Malaysia Activities For 2006
NEAT Malaysia’s activities for 2006 are as follows:
The Meeting of NEAT Working
Group, Japan, 24-25 April 2006 Dr. Stephen Leong was the NEAT Malaysia
representative at the Meeting of NEAT Working Group on
‘Overall Architecture of Community Building in East
Asia’, focusing on regional architecture for
non-traditional security and environmental cooperation
in East Asia. The two-day event held in Tokyo was
organized by NEAT Japan.
The Meeting of NEAT Working
Group, Shanghai, 26-27 May 2006 Mr. Huzaime Hamid was the NEAT Malaysia
representative at the Meeting of NEAT Working Group on
‘East Asian Financial Cooperation’ focusing on expanding
the Chiang Mai swap arrangements, intensifying efforts
to build an East Asian bond market, and the prospects
for an East Asian currency unit. The two-day event was
organized by NEAT China.
The Meeting of NEAT Working
Group, Singapore, 30 June 2006 YB Dato’ Pian Sukro, Chairman of the Suruhanjaya
Tenaga, Malaysia was the NEAT Malaysia representative at
the Meeting of NEAT Working Group on ‘Energy Security
Cooperation in East Asia’, focusing on energy security
cooperation on conservation and in the Straits of
Malacca. The one-day event was organized by NEAT
Singapore.
The Meeting of NEAT Working
Group, Tokyo, 30 June 2006 Mr. Huzaime Hamid was NEAT Malaysia’s representative
at the Meeting of NEAT Working Group on ‘Intra-regional
Exchange Rate Stability and the Prevention of Financial
Crisis in East Asia’, focusing on identifying the nature
& causes of financial instability, policy implications
for regional cooperation, macroeconomic & exchange rate
policy coordination, and a roadmap for financial &
monetary integration in the medium to long term. The
one-day event was organized by NEAT Japan.
The Meeting of NEAT Working
Group, Weihai, China, 29 July 2006 Mr. Huzaime Hamid was NEAT Malaysia’s representative
at the Meeting of NEAT Working Group on ‘East Asian
Investment Cooperation’, focusing on changes & progress
in the investment cooperation environment in East Asia,
systemic & institutional streamlining in investment
cooperation in East Asia, and priority areas of East
Asian investment cooperation. The one-day event was
organized by NEAT China.
NEAT Malaysia Preparatory
Meeting, Kuala Lumpur, 18 August 2006 As part of the preparations for the NEAT Annual
Conference, NEAT Malaysia organized a Preparatory
Meeting in ISIS Malaysia. It focused on the NEAT Policy
Recommendations made by each NEAT Working Group. The
one-day event was attended by scholars from public
universities and various selected centers and
institutions throughout the country.
Network of East Asian
Think-Tanks Country Coordinators Meeting and Annual
Conference, 21-23 August 2006 The Network of East Asian Think-tanks (NEAT) held
its 5th Country Coordinators' Meeting (CCM) and 4th
Annual Conference on 21-23 August 2006 at Le Meridien
Hotel in Kuala Lumpur. The CCM was attended by the
Country Coordinators of all 13 APT Countries and their
delegations, totaling 25 people, while the 4th NEAT
Annual Conference was attended by 80 people, including
the contingents from the aforementioned 13 APT
Countries. The two meetings crafted and sent to the
Honorable Erlinda F. Basilio, Undersecretary for Policy,
Department of Foreign Affairs, Philippines, as Chair of
the APT this year, the NEAT Memorandum of Policy
Recommendations No. 3 which contains the NEAT Inputs to
the 2nd Joint Statement of East Asian Cooperation in
2007 for the consideration of the APT Foreign Ministers
Meeting that will be held in Manila, Philippines around
7-9 December 2006.
