It is tempting to dismiss the just-concluded annual meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) as little more than a talk shop. The statement released at the end of each meeting tends to look like the one before it. Tangible accomplishments are hard to identify. Furthermore, it is difficult to take a meeting seriously when more press coverage is given to the variety-show performances of diplomats at the final dinner than to the work they did during the day. ARF is a talk shop, but in this case the talking is important. No other forum gives members the chance to meet and discuss the issues on the ARF agenda.
ARF is designed to be the main forum for discussing security affairs in the Asia-Pacific region. It now comprises 24 members; Pakistan was admitted this year after India lifted its objections. Membership ranges from tiny Singapore to China, and from Laos, one of the world's poorest countries, to the United States, the richest. With just about every possible political and economic variant represented, including free-market democracies and communist dictatorships, it's no wonder that ARF finds it difficult to offer more than statements of common purpose or provide an opportunity for bilateral consultations among its members.
No one expects ARF to solve the North Korean nuclear crisis or to halt the illegal trade in small arms (both of which were mentioned in the Chairman's Statement this year). Nonetheless, ARF statements that support these objectives do help. They put governments on record as acknowledging certain political goals. When international norms are strained, as has been the case recently with the global nuclear nonproliferation regime, regional support for those norms in the Chairman's Statement -- which this year endorsed the continuation of the moratorium on nuclear tests -- can provide much-needed reinforcement.