Asean summit pledge

Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva on Friday pledged to try to bring forward the 14th Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit by a month to early February if he is elected prime minister next week.

"The new government ought to speed up the summit in order to restore the confidence of our Asean friends," Mr Abhisit told reporters.

The summit was scheduled to be held on Dec 15-18 in the northern province of Chiang Mai. But it had to be postponed because People's Alliance for Democracy occupied Bangkok's two airports -Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang - from Nov 25 to Dec 3.

The summit has been tentatively moved to March.�The postponement has sparked criticism among some Asean leaders.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, described the delay as a setback for Southeast Asia. Cambodian prime minister called for the summit to be moved to Indonesia - with Thailand removed as Asean chairman.

The House of Representatives will meet on Monday to elect a new premier.�