Australia announced Friday that it will spend 75 million Australian dollars (57 million U.S.) on landmine and unexploded ordinance clearance (UXO) over the next five years, dpa quoted Foreign Minister Alexander Downer as saying on the sidelines of an Asian security meeting in Laos. "One of the very constructive contributions that Australia can make to the region is to start to clear away those mines and that unexploded ordinance in order to help the peoples of these countries alleviate poverty," Downer told journalists at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum (ARF). Over the last 10 years, Australia has spent 76 million U.S. dollars on landmine and UXO removals. Laos, the most-bombed country on the planet, has been a major recipient of Australian clearance aid, Downer said. "That money will predominantly be focused on Cambodia and Laos," the foreign minister said. "We will be pursuing programmes in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq, which of course have considerable problems with landmines." Earlier Friday, Downer met with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick, and discussed Australia's wish to join a new fledgling regional grouping, the East Asia Summit (EAS). "We had a very long conversation about regional security issues. I think the Americans are comfortable with Australia being part of the East Asia Summit, and they see that it is very much in Australia's national interest to be part of the emerging architecture of the region, if there is going to be over time a real East Asian community," Downer said. --mor 1301 Local Time 1001 GMT
