Asia-Europe Meeting Analysis

Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) was born in 1996 and has held five skull sessions. The research of ASEM is new in academia. Most of the scholars in China write articles about ASEM on its courses and two parties' motives however few has paid attention to its institutional problem.The paper is going to make a brief introduction of ASEM, and then analyze its value by comparing its achievements and limitations. At last it will express personal views about the institutional problem of ASEM.After 1990s, Asia and Europe started a better relation in every area. ASEM is just the result of this friendly background. It is an intergovernmental forum and a non-institutional cooperation mechanism. The two parts made great efforts in preparing and the meeting was successfully held. China plays an important role in itfrom 1996------the first ASEM, also gets great significance. The meeting has itsspecial meanings. It makes Asia and Europe directly talked, without America.The meeting has made lots of achievements. Though the financial crisis in 1997 had a bad influence on economy, the volume of trade obviously increased. Europe invests more and the cooperation promotes the free trade course. The meeting provides a chance for the leaders to talk face-to-face. The communication also includes the politics and safety affairs and gets some agreements. The cooperation in culture area is fruitful, too. Beside of the achievements, there are many obstacles. Europe always neglects the economical technology cooperation and interferes Asian internal affairs. The differences between the two cultures impede the exchange.There is an important problem in the development of ASEM which is how to make it institutionally or how to speed up the course. Many experts approve the necessity of institutionalize, but there are really lots of difficulties. Experts give relative suggestions. Because of the similarity between ASEM and APEC, they compete. Meantime, they can study from each other. Of course, ASEM should study more.Except the introduction of ASEM, the paper makes special analyses on its institutional problem. The support for the meeting from China is also listed.