To reduce the international community's distrust of its policies, Myanmar must strengthen diplomatic ties with its fellow ASEAN countries. This project aims to develop human resources who can preside over high-level government summits, to improve Myanmar's ability to fulfill its responsibilities as a member of ASEAN, to increase the trust of other member nations toward Myanmar, and to help Myanmar develop and maintain good partnerships with other ASEAN members. Under the self-operated component of the project, SPF invited a former official of the Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs to serve as an advisor.
Under the grant-funded component of this project, a total of 12 young and mid-level diplomats were dispatched to the 13th ASEAN Regional Forum (July 22-28, 2006 in Kuala Lumpur), the 12th ASEAN Summit and the East Asia Summit (January 10-15, 2007 in the Philippines), where they had opportunities to observe the methods of preparing for and managing high level ceremonies and meetings. At the ASEAN Standing Committee meeting and the meeting of the High Level Task Force on the Drafting of the ASEAN Charter (February 11-12, 2007 in Jakarta), the diplomats had a chance to observe the process of creating the ASEAN Charter, including its components addressing internal affairs, legal issues, economics, and diplomacy. Three diplomats were also sent to Vietnam to undergo training at the Institute for International Relations and to learn about the Vietnamese experience.