Foreign ministers from Asia and Africa held talks in the Indonesian capital Wednesday with the aim of drafting an agreement on a strategic alliance ahead of a weekend summit of leaders from both continents.

Ministers representing more than 80 nations delivered a joint statement on their accord, likely to focus on lowering poverty, improving trade links and reversing the marginalisation of developing nations.

The resolution on a "new Asia-Africa strategic partnership" is expected to be signed at the climax of the April 22-23 Asia-Africa summit in Jakarta, when government leaders will converge on the Indonesian capital.

The weekend event, jointly hosted by South Africa, marks the golden jubilee of the first Asia-Africa summit held in 1955 in the city of Bandung, southeast of Jakarta, which gave birth to the Non-Aligned Movement.

Up global clout

It is hoped the new partnership will help revive some of the principles laid down in the original conference and strengthen the bonds between the two continents, which are home to 73 percent of the world's population.

Opening Wednesday's talks, Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda called on Asia and Africa to find concrete ways to alleviate poverty and increase their global clout.

"Over the years, there are aspects of the 'Bandung spirit' that have not been commensurately served by the nations of our two great continents, largely because we have not been able to develop an appropriate and effective mechanism for inter-regional cooperation," Wirayuda said.

"We have not formulated a do-able and concrete plan of action that addresses the many challenges that we are facing," he said.

Fifty years after Asian and African leaders vowed to promote common prosperity in Bandung, millions of people still live in poverty and economic possibilities between the two continents remain largely untapped.

Wirayuda said Asia and Africa would not be able to realise their collective potential unless they established an institutionalised and strategic partnership in a "vigorous and pragmatic" way.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar, meanwhile, said the new partnership should focus on alleviating debt and dealing with the challenges of globalisation.

Wednesday's summit also saw numerous bilateral meetings, although the focus was on relations between Japan and China, which have become tense after violent protests in China over Japan's wartime atrocities.

Singapore's Foreign Minister George Yeo, speaking after a meeting with his Japanese counterpart Nobutaka Machimura, said he did not think that "bilateral relations would get worse" between China and Japan.

"It is not in our interest in the region to see these two giants having bad relations with each others," he said.

Japan-China rift

Thailand's Foreign Minister Kantathi Supamongkhon said he was optimistic a resolution would be found.

"I have talked to my colleagues from China and Japan, I don't expect any problem," he said.

United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, who will attend the weekend summit, has said he hopes Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Chinese President Hu Jintao will use the event to mend their rift.

The current dispute, sparked by a Japanese school textbook that plays down World War II excesses, has been exacerbated by Chinese opposition to Tokyo's bid for a permanent UN Security Council seat.

Machimura earlier Wednesday told his fellow foreign ministers that his country wanted the United Nations to pass a resolution in the next few months to expand the Security Council, saying it would be a key part of the Asian-African partnership drive.

"Concerning the reform of the UN Security Council, Japan aims for the adoption of a resolution by this summer which would in essence expand the membership in both permanent and non-permanent categories," Machimura said.