Much ado about something?

HONOLULU -- Was the inaugural East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur on Dec. 14 "much ado about nothing," as many critics are already claiming, or the "historic event" its proponents say?

It's too soon to know. While it remains unclear what EAS will eventually become, it is already quite clear what it will not be: It will not form the base of the much-heralded but still dormant East Asia Community. That role will remain with the more exclusive ASEAN-Plus-Three (A+3), comprising the 10 Southeast Asian states plus China, Japan and South Korea. It is also highly doubtful that it will, or wants to, pose a threat to U.S. interests.

The EAS host, Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, made it clear that A+3 constituted the core, noting that "You are talking about a community of East Asians. I don't know how the Australians could regard themselves as East Asians, or the New Zealanders for that matter.