The Northeast Asia Cooperation Dialogue

NEACD, which is funded by the Department of Energy, is considered the leading track two forum in Northeast Asia. At present there is no official "track one" multilateral process in the region. The most recent round of discussions, which was marked by much international excitement over the presence of many of the official negotiators for the Six-Party Talks, was held in early April 2006.

Continuing the Process
Ensuring Full Participation
Economic Cooperation

Filling a Regional Void

Northeast Asia contains a number of ongoing ideological and territorial conflicts that stem from the Cold War era. Four of the world's most powerful nations (the United States, Russia, China, and Japan) possess important interests in Northeast Asia and the Korean peninsula, yet the region lacks multilateral fora for resolving long-standing security conflicts, let alone for averting new ones. The risk of instability at best, and direct military conflicts at worst, compels the search for new mechanisms to reduce the dangers and enhance cooperation in Northeast Asia. Until the establishment of the Northeast Asia Cooperation Dialogue, however, not even an informal consultative process existed to advance such important objectives.

While there are other broader regional processes, such as the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), that deal with a wider selection of nations in the Asia Pacific and their security concerns, the goal of the NEACD is to supplement these regional fora with a sub-regional approach; namely by involving the six nations with the largest militaries and the most at stake in the security situation in Northeast Asia. Generally, five representatives from each country participate in the NEACD meetings: one policy-level official each from the foreign and defense ministries, a uniformed military officer, and two participants from private research facilities, think tanks, or universities. Participants from the United States have included deputy assistant secretaries for East Asia and the Pacific from the Defense and State Departments.

NEACD's Format

The informality of the process allows the participants to air their concerns and brainstorm about new approaches to building cooperation and reducing the risk of conflict in Northeast Asia. At each meeting of the Dialogue, there is a session on national perspectives on security in Northeast Asia. One participant from each of the states concerned (almost always the foreign ministry representative) is invited to give a brief presentation to the group to outline his/her countryıs perspective about the security situation in Northeast Asia. The substance of the presentation is completely up to the presenter, but can include the countryıs policies in the region and its concerns about the policies of other states in the region. Emphasis is upon what has changed since the previous meeting. Following each presentation, there is a question and answer period when any participant can ask questions to the presenter or the presenter's colleagues from that country.

Following the same format as this session is one focused on the military perspectives on security in the region, which includes presentations from either defense ministry officials or military officers. Presentations of military perspectives were introduced for the first time at the Moscow meeting (NEACD 3); we believe this was the first time defense/military officials from this particular subregion engaged in this sort of discussion in a multilateral setting.

At each meeting, a non-security issue also is the basis of discussion for at least one session, when potential options for regional cooperation are examined. Subjects of past discussions have included economic complementarity, the environment, agriculture and food supply, energy, and maritime shipping.

A Brief History

The first NEACD meeting, held in La Jolla in October 1993, focused primarily on security issues. Nonetheless, at this meeting, participants realized that cooperation on less confrontational issues, such as economic and environmental problems, might build the trust needed to tackle more sensitive international security problems. Twenty participants from five nations attended, agreeing that a number of specific CBMs deserved more discussion: maritime, nuclear, and land-based CBMs; crisis prevention centers; and issues of transparency. Each year, a selected specific issue continues to enhance the continual core NEACD discussion of regional security from each state’s perspective.

NEACD Study Projects

At the Moscow session (NEACD 3), participants decided to establish two study projects to examine more deeply subjects discussed at the meeting: 1) principles governing state-to-state relations in Northeast Asia; and 2) economic, political and military mutual reassurance measures (MRMs). Each study project, comprised of one member from each of the participating countries, sought to prepare a set of suggestions in each area to present to Dialogue members for discussion at the Beijing and following meetings. These two study projects met in Tokyo and Beijing in November 1995. Their suggestions were discussed at the fourth NEACD meeting in Beijing in January 1996, where it was decided to continue further study and discussion of these critical issues at future Dialogues.

Prior to NEACD 7, a pair of similar study projects on defense information sharing (transparency) and principles of cooperation in Northeast Asia were held in Honolulu, Hawaii, with the principles group establishing a set of principles that were endorsed by the NEACD 7 plenary discussions. The Defense Information Sharing study project has now met seven times since its creation. In the fall of 1999, DIS met in Tokyo and discussed the drafting and contents of each state’s defense budget. The most recent DIS study project took place in Moscow in October 2002.

NEACD's newest study project convened March 29-30, 2001 in Seoul. NEACD academic participants discussed proposals for a potential track-one multilateral process in Northeast Asia. A group of eight academics from Russia, South Korea, Japan, China, and the United States discussed the potential formats of such a process, while recognizing that heightened tensions between the DPRK and the United States made a track-one dialogue unlikely in the near future.

Continuing the Process

One conclusion that has emerged is that military confidence-building measures (CBMs) may be conceptually too narrow for this region. Mutual reassurance measures (MRMs), broader measures to promote a basis for mutual confidence and reassurance that include but are not limited to military-related measures, may be more appropriate to Northeast Asia. Second, there was a unanimous understanding among participants that the NEACD process should continue. There currently exists no other channel, formal or informal, for this particular set of nations to come together in a multilateral setting. Third, participants see NEACD as open-ended: while over the long run, this forum may move toward an official multilateral process, this possibility remains premature for the near term.

Ensuring Full Participation

While North Korea is a founding member of the Dialogue, attended the July 1993 planning meeting, and has been involved in and commented upon all stages and meetings, it has yet to send representatives to the working sessions. In light of the framework agreement with the United States and the importance of North Korean participation in this process, we are hopeful that North Korea will choose to participate in the next Dialogue. On a positive note, North Korea asked to be sent full materials and notes from the meetings it has not attended. A June 2003 meeting in La Jolla that included foreign ministry officials from the DPRK may be a further positive step. We hope that North Koreaıs continued interest and knowledge of NEACD will lead to its full-fledged participation.

Economic Cooperation

Following a short discussion at the Beijing meeting (NEACD 4) of the security impact of energy issues on Northeast Asia, the participants of the Dialogue decided to host a workshop on regional energy issues in conjunction with the Seoul Dialogue (NEACD 5). This workshop brought together leading experts from the participating countries on energy demand and nuclear fuel cycle issues to discuss how these issues impact upon the security decision making process in the region. At the following Dialogue in New York (NEACD 6), a similar workshop examining potential for cooperation in the area of maritime shipping and trade was conducted. NEACD 8 in Moscow included a workshop that examined prospects for regional cooperation on civilian use of nuclear energy. NEACD 13, also held in Moscow, included an Infrastructure and Economic Development Workshop. Experts on energy issues and railroad infrastructure gave presentations to the NEACD participants, underscoring the complex economic and policy issues driving development in the region.

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