AFP
BANGKOK - THAILAND on Wednesday named new dates for a delayed summit of Southeast Asian nations, but said arrangements for meetings with heavyweight partners including China and Japan would be made separately.
The 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have agreed to meet in Bangkok on Feb 27, 28 and March 1, said Mr Virasakdi Futrakul, permanent secretary of the foreign ministry.
The summit was originally due to take place in December but was postponed due to a blockade of Bangkok's airports by protesters opposed to the previous government, and has been repeatedly rescheduled since.
'To organise an Asean summit shows that Thailand has returned to normalcy,' Mr Virasakdi said.
But meetings with China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand - which were meant to happen simultaneously with the summit - will now be held at another time, he said.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will set dates for the meetings with so-called 'dialogue partners' on Wednesday, after many of them had problems coordinating the timing, Virasakdi added.
'Late January it's Chinese new year, in February Japan and Singapore are busy with the budget, in March the Chinese leader is busy with congress meeting,' he said.
Thailand has repeatedly changed the venue and date of the summit from the original schedule of mid-December in Bangkok.
In October it moved the location to the northern city of Chiang Mai because of protests against the last government, which was loyal to the ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
The summit was then postponed until March after the protesters launched a week-long occupation of Bangkok's airports in December, which led to the toppling of the government and the installation of Mr Abhisit's government.
In mid-December the government then said it would be from Feb 24-26, while Abhisit said he hoped it could be in January. Less than two weeks ago it again changed the dates, to Feb 13-15.
Supporters of Thaksin, who was ousted in a military coup in 2006, said earlier Tuesday they would hold rallies to block the summit.
Asean comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
The 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have agreed to meet in Bangkok on Feb 27, 28 and March 1, said Mr Virasakdi Futrakul, permanent secretary of the foreign ministry.
The summit was originally due to take place in December but was postponed due to a blockade of Bangkok's airports by protesters opposed to the previous government, and has been repeatedly rescheduled since.
'To organise an Asean summit shows that Thailand has returned to normalcy,' Mr Virasakdi said.
But meetings with China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand - which were meant to happen simultaneously with the summit - will now be held at another time, he said.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will set dates for the meetings with so-called 'dialogue partners' on Wednesday, after many of them had problems coordinating the timing, Virasakdi added.
'Late January it's Chinese new year, in February Japan and Singapore are busy with the budget, in March the Chinese leader is busy with congress meeting,' he said.
Thailand has repeatedly changed the venue and date of the summit from the original schedule of mid-December in Bangkok.
In October it moved the location to the northern city of Chiang Mai because of protests against the last government, which was loyal to the ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
The summit was then postponed until March after the protesters launched a week-long occupation of Bangkok's airports in December, which led to the toppling of the government and the installation of Mr Abhisit's government.
In mid-December the government then said it would be from Feb 24-26, while Abhisit said he hoped it could be in January. Less than two weeks ago it again changed the dates, to Feb 13-15.
Supporters of Thaksin, who was ousted in a military coup in 2006, said earlier Tuesday they would hold rallies to block the summit.
Asean comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
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