BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: The 23rd edition of the Asean Summit and related summits got underway in this tiny oil-rich sultanate here with senior officials from the region discussing the pressing need to implement the Asean Community Blueprint post-2015 and make Asean an economic force to be reckoned with.
Leaders from the 10-member grouping were joined by their counterparts from China, Japan and South Korea as well as the United States, Russia and India to discuss issues ranging from wider economic cooperation to the need to liberalise trade and services.