SEOUL, 10 September 2015 – Philippine Ambassador to Seoul Raul S. Hernandez represented the country at the ASEM Symposium on Eurasia Transport and Logistics held on 9-10 September 2015 in Seoul, notably at the Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM) convened on the first day to review and finalize the symposium's outcome document, the Seoul Declaration.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye formally opened the symposium at the Shilla Hotel on September 10, emphasizing in her welcoming remarks of the importance to link transport and logistics networks across Eurasia in order to realize the infinite potential of Eurasia, which accounts for 75 percent of the world's total population and 60 percent of the world's GDP.

The symposium was the result of Chairman's statement issued at the ASEM Summit in Milan, Italy on October 16 to 17, 2014 expressing the support of ASEM leaders for President Park's offer to host one to look into the feasibility of establishing an intermodal transport and logistics network spanning Eurasia in accordance with her major foreign policy of the Eurasia Initiative.

She called on US, China and Russia to work together to establish a Trans-Eurasian Corridor comprised of a unified system of transport, energy and trade networks linking Asia and Europe, emphasizing the importance of shared vision and plans to realize this goal.

Through the Eurasia Initiative, President Park expressed her country's interest to be an active player in parallel initiatives being promoted by other countries such as the United States, New Silk Road Initiative, China's One Belt, One Road Initiative and Russia's New Eastern Policy that aim to open up routes to spur investments and facilitate cross-border trade in goods.

While ASEAN member-countries and the ASEAN Secretariat participate in ASEM as individual partners, it was not discussed how the ASEM Eurasian Transport and Logistics Network would connect all the parallel initiatives mentioned at the symposium with the ASEAN Master Plan for Connectivity (AMPC), where the Philippines has a stake through the ASEAN RO-RO-network.

The Philippines has launched its Strong Republic Nautical Highway to enhance inter-island connectivity. Other pelagic ASEAN states also have standing policies to uphold their maritime interests. Indonesia, for example, recently unveiled its Maritime Axis/Maritime Fulcrum Doctrine to emphasize the importance of port connectivity within its borders and with its neighbors.

At the conclusion of the ASEM Symposium, the Seoul Declaration was adopted, which proposed the creation of a multi-national Eurasia Experts Group convening three working groups of high-level officials and specialists from ASEM member countries to conduct joint research on the establishment of an intermodal transport and logistics network in Eurasia.

South Korea offered to host the Experts Group inaugural meeting in May 2016 in Seoul.

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