The European Union and members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have agreed to do more to boost their political and economic cooperation. The two released a joint five-page declaration Thursday during a meeting in the German city of Nuremberg.

Southeast Asian governments attending an annual meeting in the Philippines are pushing for faster economic growth in the less-developed countries of the region. VOA's Heda Bayron reports from Cebu, where Asian leaders are gathering for a regional summit.

Senior Southeast Asian economic officials meeting in the Philippines are pushing for faster economic integration in the region and more preferential free trade deals with its major Asian trading partners. Officials say the stalled global free trade negotiations underscore the need for regional trading arrangements. VOA's Heda Bayron reports from Cebu, where the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and China, Japan, South Korea and others are gathering this week.

Philippine officials are confident that two Asian summits that were abruptly postponed last month will go ahead safely and successfully starting this week. They say neither rain nor threats of terrorism will stop the meetings. VOA's Heda Bayron reports from Cebu.

What were to be summit meetings of East Asian leaders have collapsed completely as a tropical storm bears down on the summit site. VOA's Heda Bayron reports from the Philippine city of Cebu, a meeting of the Chinese and Japanese foreign ministers is all that saved the event from complete failure.

Philippine officials have postponed the summit of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations because of concerns about tropical storm Utor, which is approaching with winds of 75 kilometers an hour. The move comes as the Philippines is still recovering from a much stronger storm one week ago that left more than 1,000 dead or missing. Douglas Bakshian reports from Manila.