On the evening of October 24, 2009, the 12th ASEAN Plus China, Japan and South Korea (10+3) Summit issued a chairman’s statement in Cha-am Hua Hin, Thailand. Participating leaders stressed the importance of strengthening cooperation to cope with the financial crisis, climate change and food and energy security issues.

Leaders of 10 ASEAN members, Premier of the Chinese State Council Wen Jiabao, Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak attended the 10+3 Summit.

According to the statement, the leaders endorsed the agreement reached at the 12th ASEAN Plus Three Finance Ministers’ Meeting on 3 May 2009 in Bali to implement the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralisation (CMIM) with the total size of US$ 120 billion by the end of 2009 and to set up an independent regional surveillance unit. They welcomed the agreement to establish the Credit Guarantee and Investment Mechanism (CGIM) with an initial capital of US$ 500 million under the Asian Bond Markets Initiative (ABMI) to support the local currency-denominated corporate bond in the region. They welcomed China’s contribution of US$ 200 million to the CGIM.

They expressed commitment to work closely together to ensure a successful outcome of the Copenhagen Conference in December 2009 that should incorporate long-term cooperative actions to address climate change in accordance with the principles and provisions of the UNFCCC and the Bali Action Plan.

They reaffirmed commitment to the ASEAN Plus Three process as a main vehicle towards the long-term goal of building an East Asian community with ASEAN as the driving force. They also stressed support to building the ASEAN community.

They reiterated commitment to ensure food and energy security for the people as a matter of high priority in accordance with Cha-am Hua Hin Statement on ASEAN Plus Three Cooperation on Food Security and Bio-Energy Development adopted at this Summit.

In the late 1990s, under the impact of economic globalization, ASEAM members gradually realized the importance of launching new level of cooperation and building comprehensive cooperative relations and decided to carry out “external” economic cooperation. In December 1997, the first ASEAN Plus Three (10+3) informal summit was held in Malaysia. ASEAN also held individual meetings with China, Japan and South Korea leaders respectively at the same the three 10+1 summits. In recent years, the 10+3 and 10+1 cooperation mechanisms have gradually shifted cooperation focus from the economic sector to the political, security and cultural fields and a sound cooperation pattern covering a wide range of areas has been built.

Established in August 1967, ASEAN has 10 member states at present, including Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia.