Dialogue in Northeast Asia

The Ulaanbaatar Process, a civil society dialogue for peace and stability in Northeast Asia, was launched by GPPAC in Mongolia’s capital, Ulaanbaatar, in June, 2015.

Coordinated by the GPPAC Global and Northeast Asia Regional Secretariats, with Mongolian NGO, Blue Banner, this process promotes effective regional Track 2 dialogue (non-governmental, informal and unofficial dialogue) to strengthen the role of civil society. This is to complement the Track 1 process, towards the development of an institutionalised regional peace and security mechanism for Northeast Asia. Two meetings have been held thus far, in 2015 and 2016.

To make a habit of dialogue, the process involves:

1. Holding regular, face-to-face, closed-door meetings among members of civil society groups in the Northeast Asian region, and most importantly, an annual Ulaanbaatar Process meeting in the Mongolian capital.

2. Convening additional annual working group meetings on thematic issues (e.g. the Korean Peninsula and gender issues).

3. Disseminating strategic and targeted action-oriented policy recommendations, through submissions to Track 1/1.5 actors and outreach/constituency meetings in relevant capitals, including Seoul, Tokyo, Washington DC, Beijing, and Pyongyang.

4. Publishing journal articles analysing key issues in the region and civil society recommendations.