From: apakabar@IGC.APC.ORG (Indonesia Publications/Task Force)
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.seasia-l
Subject: SEA: Russia & ASEAN
Date: 26 Jul 92 11:28:33 GMT
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/* Written 12:15 am  Jul 26, 1992 by newsdesk in cdp:ips.englibrary */
/* ---------- "SOUTH-EAST ASIA: RUSSIA RE-INTRODUC" ---------- */
Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Title: SOUTH-EAST ASIA: RUSSIA RE-INTRODUCES ITSELF TO ASEAN


an inter press service feature

by ramon isberto

manila, jul 24 (ips) -- russian foreign minister andrei kozyrev got
his metaphors mixed, but his message was clear: south-east asia is
now dealing with a democratic, not a soviet, russia.

at the meeting of the foreign ministers of the association of
south-east asian nations (asean) this week, the 41-year old career
diplomat said ''it was a sign of the times that the 'young asian
tigers' and the 'russian bear' are seeking new forms of partnership
and cooperation''.

he then added that the ''double-headed eagle of russia'' was
looking both at the west and east with equal interest.

it was the first time a russian foreign minister had been invited
as a 'guest' to an annual meeting of the asean foreign ministers and
kozyrev apparently wanted to make sure he got his message across.

''moscow and washington -- the two recent poles of the global
ideological confrontation -- have become partners,'' he said during
the speech he gave before the ministers. ''russia's intention is to
be constructively present in the asian-pacific region and it is
ready to conduct a comprehensive dialogue with asean countries.''

kozyrev proposed that countries in the region take steps to avert
possible naval conflicts, perhaps even form an ''international naval
force'' to ensure freedom of navigation.

he added russia was prepared to ''develop cooperation in the
military and military-technological area with the asean states'' to
keep their security at the level of ''reasonable sufficiency''.

moscow's ties with asean had thawed under mikhail gorbachev, when
what the world knows now as the commonwealth of independent states
(cis) was still the soviet union.

gorbachev began the soviet withdrawal from cam ranh base in
vietnam in the late 1980s. ''over the last seven years, our pacific
fleet has been reduced by 73 ships,'' kozyrev said.

by the time the united states and the philippines negotiated a
new bases agreement last year, washington could no longer cite a
credible soviet threat as a justification for keeping its bases.

the demise of the soviet union and the rise of the cis cemented
those changes of the gorbachev era. it has also prompted moscow to
shift the focus of its external relations, away from asia's
remaining communist countries -- china, north korea and vietnam --
and toward japan, south korea, hong kong, taiwan and asean.
(more/ips)



south-east asia: russia (2)

but with russia saddled by huge domestic problems, moscow was not
expected to display too much initiative in asia.

''russia's long-term interests as a great power in the asia-
pacific remain,'' says julius c parrenas, of the centre for research
and communications, a manila-based conservative think tank. ''but
russia will not be able to pay as much attention to...the pursuit of
its long-term objectives in the region as before.''

granted a forum by asean, kozyrev seemed intent on countering
such views. ''russia remains a pacific power,'' he said.

citing recent arms reductions pacts between russia and the united
states, the russian foreign minister proposed that countries in the
region discuss ''confidence-building measures''.

these included steps to place limits on the scale of naval
exercises, the holding of multilateral dialogues to set up a crisis
management system and even the formation of an international naval
force to provide freedom of navigation.

asked if russia would pull out its remaining forces in cam ranh
bay in response to the u.s. withdrawal from its philippine bases by
end-1992, he said: ''it depends on our discussion with the
vietnamese. we are not rushing to leave.''

kozyrev pointed out that on jul. 26 the russian navy would raise
its historic colours -- the white flag with the blue cross of st.
andrew -- to symbolise that the military forces of a 'democratic
russia' had indeed 'changed colours' and no longer posed a threat to
asean.

a lot of what new russia now says sounds much like what the old
soviet union said before. kozyrev's ''confidence building'' measures,
for example, seemed aimed at achieving an old soviet objective:
getting the united states to put its vastly superior naval forces on
the negotiating table of some sort of future arms talks.

but there are clearly new elements to russia's asia-pacific
diplomacy. that was demonstrated in june when a former commander of
the soviet pacific fleet, admiral vladimir sidorov, headed a
delegation of senior russian officials that visited taiwan.

sidorov met with taiwan's top leadership, including president lee
teng-hui, and business leaders seeking financial and other help to
build russia's economy.

meantime, back home, russian arms manufacturers are said to be
negotiating for the sale of russia's newest jet aircraft, such as
the top-of-the-line mig-31, to beijing. (end/ips/ri/cb/92)
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