South And Central Asian Affairs

The order of the next three countries, Canada, the United States, and China, varies a bit depending upon two variables. First, whether the ranking counts land area or total area, which also includes certain bodies of water such as rivers, lakes, and coastal waters. And second, whether China's area should include only the mainland or also its territory Taiwan and Special Administrative Regions Hong Kong and Macau, all three of which would likely be independent countries if not for China's influence at the United Nations. This guide features selected high-quality resources on the global, political, economic, social and cultural aspects of the continent of Asia and its countries. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People’s Republic of China, and to the south, east and the west by the Republic of India.

The Ministers noted the consultations which had taken place between the ASEAN Working Group on ZOPFAN and the SEANWFZ and the NWS and urged the NWS to accede to the Protocol to the SEANWFZ Treaty as another means of enhancing the regional security environment. ASEAN States and Japan also issued an ASEAN-Japan Plan of Action emphasizing economic, cultural, and security-related cooperation. The ASEAN-Japan Joint Declaration for Co-operation in Counter-Terrorism was adopted at the 8th ASEAN-Japan summit on 30 November. At the ASEAN-Japan Senior Officials Meeting, Japan stated that it would like to advance cooperation with ASEAN in the specific areas of counter-terrorism and nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and the reduction of tension in the Korean Peninsula. The paper addresses the establishment of the SEANWFZ as a means to “contribute towards general and complete nuclear disarmament”, and the creation of the SEANWFZ Commission and its Executive Committee to oversee compliance with the Treaty.

List Of Asian Countries By Area

The massive project, however, has had a devastating effect on the human and natural environment. The damming of the Yangtze River created a reservoir that flooded 632 square kilometers , taking out hundreds of towns and villages and displacing more than 1.2 million people. It submerged hundreds of factories, mines, and waste dumps, allowing industrial pollutants and garbage to enter the reservoir. The reservoir has also threatened the habitats of birds, fish, and other wildlife populations. Asia has a number of state-of-the-art engineering marvels that solve complex infrastructural problems.

In recent years, Bangladesh has emerged as a leading manufacturer of textile products and become a frontrunner in South Asia. In fact, in 2019, Bangladesh had a growth rate of 8%, compared to India's of 5.3%. As the trade deficit decreased, the growth in remittances grew strongly by 9.6% in 2019 to reach a record $16.4 billion. The forecast of an increase in domestic demand, hike in public sector wages, and increased construction activity will bolster its economy in the near term, as well. While many of these economies have a considerable share of revenues from international exports, domestic demand is expected to be the primary driver for growth in the near future. Domestic markets make these economies less prone to external vulnerabilities and global financial turmoil.

Today, the term “Asia” is used as a cultural concept, while subregion classifications describe the distinct geopolitical identities of the continent. These classifications are Western Asia, Central Asia, Southern Asia, Eastern Asia, Southeastern Asia, and Northern Asia. At their 6th Meeting in Singapore from 23 to 24 July, the ASEAN Foreign Ministers convened the Commission of the SEANWFZ Treaty for the first time. The Commission ordered the preparation of the draft rules of procedure and initiation of all necessary actions in compliance with the Treaty, including consultations with the NWS, the IAEA, and other related bodies.

Countries In Asia:

Due to tectonic shifts of the various Pacific plates, strong earthquakes repeatedly occur in these regions, which in turn trigger volcanoes and tsunamis. As the importance of the region increases in the globalizing world, both generalist and specialist knowledge about Southeast Asia become critical to the world and the region itself. In that sense, Southeast Asian studies as a knowledge construct transforms itself into a lived reality, especially for the Southeast Asians themselves.

Central Asia And The Caucasus

The Dubai Metro system is the first urban train network on the Arabian Peninsula. Russia has oil reserves in Siberia, and massive natural gas reserves throughout the Arctic. Russia is the world’s largest producer of natural gas, and the largest supplier of natural gas to Europe. Russia has not aggressively drilled in the Arctic Ocean, but engineers say the area holds millions of barrels of oil and gas reserves.

Asian Alliances And Trade Agreements

In this connection, they welcomed the first direct consultation between ASEAN and the NWS in Hanoi on 19 May 2001, reaffirmed their support for this process, and called for continued consultations with the NWS. The Ministers also noted with satisfaction the progress in the implementation of the overlapping confidence building measures and preventive diplomacy . The Ministers welcomed on-going consultations between ASEAN and the nuclear weapon states on the Protocol to the SEANWFZ Treaty and urged the NWS to sign the Protocol to the Treaty as soon as possible. The 35th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting took place in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam, on July. The Ministers acknowledged that following the 2001 ASEAN Declaration on Joint Action to Counter Terrorism, ASEAN at all levels had undertaken practical measures and expressed its determination to further enhance ASEAN’s role and contribution in the fight against terrorism.

Forestry, the management of trees and other vegetation in forests, is an important but threatened industry in a select group of Asian countries. China, Indonesia, and Malaysia make up more than half of the forested lands in Asia. China is a major exporter of wood products, ranking first globally in wood-based panel production, paper, and wood furniture. These tropical woods, such as teak, are primarily used in high-quality furniture and flooring. The “ASEAN Vision 2020” adopted in Kuala Lumpur on 15 December, by the Heads of State/Government of ASEAN, envisioned a “Concert of Southeast Asian Nations” to be in 2020 a Zone of Peace, Freedom and Neutrality, as envisaged in the Kuala Lumpur Declaration of 1971.

The ASEAN countries reaffirmed their support for and active participation in all efforts to achieve the objective of general and complete disarmament, especially the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons and of other weapons of mass destruction . They also noted the recent dialogues among the major powers and concerned States on national missile defenses . At the 5th ASEAN Plus Three Foreign Ministers Meeting (ASEAN+3), which convened on 1 July, Chairman H.E Dr. N. Hassan Wirajuda issued a statement noting that the meeting focused on various regional issues, with special emphasis placed on developments in Korea. Once gain, in addition to addressing administrative and economic issues, the Ministers also welcomed the accession of Japan to the TAC and China’s readiness to sign to Protocol of the Treaty of the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon Free Zone.

Leaders reaffirmed the high priority of political and security cooperation on the ASEAN agenda. They endorsed the Plan of Action of the ASEAN Security Community, a community established to enhance ASEAN’s capacity through regional instruments and mechanisms in establishing regional norms and enhancing conflict prevention, resolution, and peace-building in the region. Leaders agreed on the urgent need to sustain cooperative activities in counter-terrorism. The establishment of a network of law enforcement agencies among ASEAN member countries was proposed.

On 27 May, the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Transnational Crime, through the Working Group on Cybercrime, finalized a “roadmap” for ASEAN members to combat cybercrime through regional information sharing, capacity building, and enforcement regulation. This was followed by the 9th ASEAN-Japan Counter-Terrorism Dialogue on May in Singapore. The meeting covered counter-terrorism in a variety of fields, including CBRN explosives and cyber-terrorism.

Based on a global survey in 2006, Bhutan was rated as the happiest country in Asia and the eighth-happiest in the world. Besides Bengali, English is also used as a second language among the middle and upper classes and is widely used in higher education and legal system. Gulf of ThailandIsland resort in the Gulf of Thailand off the coast of southern Thailand. The Greeks used it to designate the lands situated to the east of their homeland.