During his visit to Brussels on Wednesday 11 and Thursday 12 July, Singapore's Minister for Trade Chan Chun Sing spoke to European decision-makers on trade and underlined Singapores's interest in a swift ratification of its free trade and investment agreements concluded with the EU.
Chan and Austria's Minister for Economic Affairs Margarete Schramböck, who was speaking on behalf of the Austrian Presidency of the EU Council, agreed during a meeting on Wednesday to conclude these agreements "as quickly as possible". The EU and Singapore hope to sign and ratify their free trade agreement by the end of 2018. This agreement was concluded in 2102, with a view to implementation in early 2019.
By contrast, the investment agreement, which will need to be ratified by the EU member states' national parliaments, may not be signed or implemented before the end of the current European Commission's mandate in autumn 2019 (see EUROPE 12025).
During a meeting on Wednesday, European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström, and Chan agreed on the "strategic importance" of the EU-Singapore free trade agreement as "a pathfinder" for closer trade relations between the EU and the regional ASEAN bloc. They also agreed on "the key role the EU can play in Asia at a time countries are looking to diversify their strong links with China and with a weakening presence of other big trading powers", according to a European source. (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)