ULAANBAATAR:
Malaysia hopes more emphasis and concrete measures will be given to realise the
Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a free trade agreement between
ASEAN and six member countries of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM).
Deputy
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said when concluded, the
agreement offered vast opportunities and possibilities for both Asia and Europe
to bring their economic partnership and cooperation to greater heights.
Collectively,
the 16 RCEP countries with over three billion people account for about 48.6 per
cent of global population and has a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of
US$22.68 trillion or 29.3 per cent of world GDP.
“The 16
countries accounts for 25.2 per cent of global trade valued at US$9.6 trillion.
In this context, it is important to revitalise the economic pillar,” he said in
his statement at the first plenary session of the 11th ASEM Summit here today.
Malaysia,
he said, was committed to this process as an economic partnership that expanded
trade and investment was crucial to achieving sustained economic growth for
Asia and Europe.
At the
East Asia Summit (EAS) in 2012, regional leaders formally agreed to launch
negotiations on the RCEP, which aims to be the largest free trade bloc in the
world, comprising all 10 ASEAN nations as well as China, India, Japan, South
Korea, Australia, and New Zealand.
Core
areas of negotiation includes trade in goods, trade in services, investment,
economic and technical cooperation, intellectual property, competition, dispute
settlement and other relevant issues.
Ahmad
Zahid said 20 years after its inception, ASEM remained important and relevant
in forging closer partnerships and linkages between Asia and Europe. The two
regions, he said, should identify new ways to further enhance their
partnership, adding that they must cooperate through the three pillars under
the ASEM framework, putting equal emphasis on each.
Speaking
to the Malaysian media later, Ahmad Zahid said the Prime Minister of Slovenia
Miro Cerar had extended an invitation for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun
Razak to visit his country. During their bilateral meeting held on the
sidelines of the summit, Ahmad Zahid said Cerar sought Malaysia’s support for
former president Danilo Turk who is one of the 10 candidates vying to be the
next United Nations Secretary General.
Bernama
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