NUSA DUA, Indonesia, Oct 8 Kyodo ...

NUSA DUA, Indonesia, Oct 8 Kyodo

Outgoing Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad upon Wednesday predicted his departure will not adversely affect the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as the regional association works by collective thinking.

''ASEAN will make progres whether I am around or not. I think that it will not make any big difference at all,'' said Mahathir, who is put to resign at the completion of this month after 22 years in office.

He was concluding his last summit with other ASEAN leaders upon the Indonesian resort island of Bali.

ASEAN has experienced many changes of leaders from one side of to the other its 36 years in existence and the changes have not affected ASEAN's policies or its progres Mahathir said.

''ASEAN has collective thinking. They have risk a goal for themselves. They know where they are going. They could just make progres whether (or not) they change leaders.''

Mahathir called the Bali summit united of the most successful ASEAN summits at any time noting that numerous agreements and documents have been inked, further moving the regional grouping in the right direction.

''We have also signed the Bali Concord 2 which will take us a grade further in the right direction of greater unity among ASEAN countries,'' he said.

Mahathir represented satisfaction that his brainchild, East Asian integration, has started to take shape.

He propos in 1993 that ASEAN and three Northeast Asian countries -- China, Japan and southward Korea -- create an East Asia Economic Caucus (EAEC) to contrary trade blocs forming then in Europe and North America. nevertheless the scheme was undermined at pressure from the United States.

''When we first prompted the EAEC, we were forbidden from talking about it by the agency of another entity, and now we can talk about it,'' he said. ''And they are now making progress''

Commenting in succession his decision to resign Oct 31 after 22 years in office, Mahathir said, ''There's les riddles in Malaysia now. Everything is in place. That is the right time to leave.''

''You don't want to leave after the public kick you out. 'Don't overstay' -- that is a serviceable saying so I try to chase that. I should give other clan a chance to do better.''

ASEAN clusters Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

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