Commission launches a 'new partnership' with South East Asia

The European Commission has adopted a Communication on a new partnership with South East Asia, setting out a comprehensive strategy for future EU relations with the region.

The Commission holds out the offer of bilateral agreements with countries in the region to deepen co operation on a modern agenda including human rights, good governance, justice and home affairs issues and fight against terrorism.

The Commission is also proposing a regional trade action plan, the Trans-Regional EU-ASEAN Trade Initiative (TREATI), which seeks closer cooperation between both regions on a wide range of trade, investments and regulatory issues. TREATI will thus enable the establishment of a closer economic relationship between two important trading regions, and thereby permit serious consideration to be given to a potential Free Trade Agreement following the successful outcome of the current WTO round of trade talks.

The Communication suggests how the existing institutional framework could be made more productive, by defining more clearly which issues should be tackled by the Asia Europe meeting, ASEAN and the Asia Regional Forum.

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