The leaders will state that the spread of the Ebola virus is a global threat at the end of the two-day summit of the Asia-Europe Meeting, or ASEM, according to a final draft of the chair's statement.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told the meeting his government will consider providing additional assistance for preventing the spread of the deadly virus.
Japan pledged $40 million for West Africa at the U.N. General Assembly in September and is considering sending medical staff to the region and providing an anti-influenza drug developed by a Japanese company as a possible Ebola treatment.
Other key issues at the summit include the Ukraine crisis, as well as the territorial disputes between China and Japan in the East China Sea, and between China and Southeast Asian countries including the Philippines and Vietnam in the South China Sea.
The meeting is being attended by the leaders of around 50 countries and institutions, including the heads of the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, as well as Abe, South Korean President Park Geun Hye and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. Russian President Vladimir Putin is also expected to attend.
Russia joined ASEM in 2010 and it is the first time that Putin will take part in the meeting.
On the sidelines of the summit, Abe is looking for an opportunity to make unofficial contact with Putin.
Japan is seeking to strike a balance between maintaining solidarity with the West over Russia's actions in Ukraine and resolving bilateral issues with Moscow, most notably a long-standing dispute over the sovereignty of four Russian-held islands off Hokkaido.
Putin and Petro Poroshenko, president of Ukraine which is not part of ASEM, are due to hold talks on Friday to discuss a diplomatic solution to the situation in eastern Ukraine with the cooperation of the leaders of Germany and France.
ASEM was launched in 1996 as a forum for dialogue and cooperation between Asia and Europe.
After the ASEM summit, Abe will attend the first summit meeting between Japan and the Nordic-Baltic Eight group for regional cooperation, on Friday. The NB-8 comprises Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
