Backgrounder: Chronology of East Asia Summit

The Seventh East Asia Summit ( EAS) will open in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh on Tuesday, back-to-back with the 21st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and other related summits.

The EAS will draw leaders of 18 countries including the 10 ASEAN members and their eight dialogue partners -- China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, India, Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Russia.

It will be the second time the U.S. and Russia join the summit after the two countries were admitted to the EAS in 2010.

The Seventh EAS provides a valuable opportunity for leaders to engage in key strategic, political and economic issues of common concern, with the aim to promote stability and economic prosperity in the region.

The EAS will focus on six priority areas for cooperation, including energy and the environment, education, finance, global health issues and communicable diseases, disaster management and ASEAN connectivity.

The following is a chronology of EAS since its inception in 2005:

Dec. 14, 2005 -- The First EAS was held on Dec. 14, 2005 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The leaders signed the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the East Asia Summit outlining its principles and purposes, areas of cooperation and primary modalities.

Jan, 15, 2007 -- The Second EAS was held on Jan. 15, 2007 in Cebu City, the Philippines. The leaders convened a special session on energy to achieve shared goal of ensuring affordable energy sources for development in the region, and signed Cebu Declaration on East Asian Energy Security thereafter.

Nov. 21, 2007 -- The Third EAS was held on Nov. 21, 2007 in Singapore. The leaders signed the Singapore Declaration on Climate Change, Energy and the Environment, which affirmed their commitment to carry out collective action to address these challenges for mutual benefit and the common good.

Oct. 25, 2009 -- The Fourth EAS was held on Oct. 25, 2009 in Cha-am Hua Hin, Thailand. Recognizing the urgent need to enhance cooperation to effectively respond to natural disasters which have increased in frequency and intensity over the last 20 years in the region, the leaders adopted the Cha-am Hua Hin Statement on EAS Disaster Management.

Oct. 30, 2010 -- The Fifth EAS opened on Oct. 30, 2010 in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi. The leaders decided to officially invite Russia and the U.S. to join the EAS starting 2011 in a way to expand the dialogue mechanism.

Nov. 19, 2011 -- The Sixth EAS opened on Nov. 19, 2011 in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh. The leaders adopted the Declaration of the EAS on the Principles for Mutually Beneficial Relations and the Declaration of the 6th EAS on ASEAN Connectivity.