The fifth East Asia Summit (EAS) , an annual meeting of state leaders from the East Asian region and adjoining countries, will take place in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi on Oct. 30. The countries represented at the EAS are China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, New Zealand and the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). This year, the United States and Russia will have observer status at the summit, and a statement to be issued by the end of the EAS will endorse their participation as official partners in the summit starting in 2011. U.S. and Russian full participation in 2011 will change the shape of the EAS, which was designed as an anti-Western bloc. This reflects the U.S. attempt to re-engage East Asia and participate in multilateral groupings.