Despite the steady economic development of Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and other neighbors, Myanmar and Cambodia long remained outside the regional framework of economic development and cooperation and followed their own distinct political paths. Myanmar joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the summer of 1997, however, and Cambodia followed suit in the spring of 1999. This brought both nations within the framework of economic development and cooperation. Politically and economically, Myanmar and Cambodia now stand at a very important crossroads.
The aim of this project was to conduct comprehensive assessments of the impact of the international environment and changes in internal politics on both countries' politics, economy, foreign policy, and national security, and to release the findings in both countries and outside. It also had the objective of simultaneously building a research network for the future, linking the two countries with Japan and their Southeast Asian neighbors.
On the Japanese side, the first step was the establishment of a research committee consisting of five specialists in regional and security issues and led by Professor Seki Tomoda of Asia University. In Myanmar and Cambodia, meanwhile, the investigations detailed below were conducted with the cooperation of the Myanmar Institute of Strategic and International Studies and the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace.
In fiscal 1998, the first year, a comprehensive examination was undertaken of the political, economic, diplomatic, and national security aspects of changes in Myanmar following that country's entry into ASEAN in 1997 and of events in Cambodia after the July 1998 general election. These investigations involved in-depth interviews with researchers from the two above-mentioned institutions, as well as a wide range of other people, including policy makers, politicians, diplomats, nongovernmental organization personnel, and journalists. The results of the investigations were compiled in interim reports (available in English and Japanese) and distributed to relevant organizations.
This year, the investigations of the first year were expanded to include such issues as talks between the military government of Myanmar and opposition forces, problems for Cambodia arising from its membership in ASEAN, the future of international moves to bring members of the Pol Pot regime to justice, and the influence of China on both countries. This accentuated the need for policy coordination between Japan and the United States with regard to the economic sanctions imposed on Myanmar and, with the first meeting of the Consultative Group for Cambodia since 1996 in Tokyo in February 1999, confirmed that Cambodia had entered a period of stability.