Whether ‘neighbour' is an innate compulsion or a well-wisher, the aphorism of ‘cooperation not confrontation' is the basic condition of peaceful co-existence. With the objective of seeking regional cooperation South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation was fashioned to bring the warmth of commonality and bridge the void of differences among various nations of the region. It is a platform where they can actually talk on concrete issues and solve them amicably.
South Asia is a quotable example where the likes of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal co-exist with ‘n' number of disputes from one another. Embracing the strategy of dialogue or talks, this regional association was formed on the footsteps of UN and the Non-Aligned Movement. It was established with the purpose of promoting peace, stability, amity and progress through dialogue. SAARC is the only regional organization for underlying problems in South Asia. It is the largest (by population) regional organization in the world covering a population of nearly 1.47 billion.
The Association serves as a platform for South Asians to work together in order to promote the sense of friendship, trust and understanding. It works on the condition of respect for the principles of sovereign equality, territorial integrity, national independence, non-use of force and non-interference in the internal affairs of other states and peaceful settlement of all disputes.
Working Groups have also been set up in the areas of: Information and Communications Technology (ICT); Biotechnology; Intellectual Property Rights (IPR); Tourism; and Energy.
On August 2006, at the SAARC Standing Committee meeting held at Dhaka, the ‘Observer' status was conferred to China, Japan, European Union, South Korea and USA.
The above mentioned five observers of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation will deliver speeches at the 14th summit of the forum in New Delhi on April 3-4. This is for the first time in the history of SAARC that its observers are going to address the summit.
As sought by the founding members of SAARC, it is a vital trade-bloc in the South Asian region. In 1993, an agreement was reached after four rounds of trade negotiations on preferential trade arrangements. The agreement was inked as SAARC Preferential Trading Arrangement (SAPTA).
Though the platform of SAARC can't be exploited to address bilateral politically contentious issues, it can still act as a platform for informal ‘corridor talks'.
Across the board, SAARC has extended cooperation in areas like agriculture and rural development, social development, the environment, meteorology and forestry, science and technology, human resource development, transport and communications and energy development through various programmes.
The Association has carried out regional studies on trade, manufactures and services, environment and poverty alleviation, SAFTA and matters related to customs.
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