At the 32nd ministerial meeting of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Regional Forum in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) on Friday 11 July, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, reiterated the EU’s long-term objective of sealing a regional free trade agreement between the EU and ASEAN.
“Cooperation between the EU and ASEAN has a bright future ahead of it”, she said, adding that “ASEAN investment in the EU has increased by at least 20% over the last four years”. After China, the EU is ASEAN’s biggest trading partner.
Against a backdrop of heightened trade tensions with China and the United States (see other news), the head of European diplomacy stressed that tariffs were hurting consumers and industry. “Free trade is the driving force behind our economies”, she said.
She welcomed the ongoing negotiations for bilateral free trade agreements with Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines, as well as the reopening of negotiations with Malaysia (see EUROPE 13561/17).
Cooperation to promote regional security. On the security front, Ms Kallas said that Europe’s cooperation with Asia was “stronger than ever”. In particular, she called for greater cooperation in the area of submarine cable safety.
She went on to cite current regional challenges, such as tensions in Myanmar, the South and East China Seas, and the dangerous behaviour of North Korea. She also stressed that Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction were “in our collective interest”.
The High Representative highlighted, in particular, the new security and defence partnerships with Japan and South Korea (see EUROPE 13517/10), the ongoing discussions with India to seal a similar agreement (see EUROPE 13656/5), as well as the very recent opening of a security and defence dialogue with the Philippines (see EUROPE 13651/16).
In addition to the ministerial meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum, Ms Kallas took part in the EU-ASEAN post-ministerial conference and held bilateral talks, notably with Sultan Nazrin Shah of Perak and the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim. (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)