ASEAN economic ministers discuss RCEP talks

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh attended a special ASEAN Economic Ministers' Meeting on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in Bangkok on June 22.
ASEAN economic ministers discuss RCEP talks ảnh 1Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh at the meeting (Photo: VNA)
Bangkok (VNA) – Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh attendeda special ASEAN Economic Ministers' Meeting on the Regional ComprehensiveEconomic Partnership (RCEP) in Bangkok on June 22.

Themeeting, held within the framework of the 34th ASEAN Summit and relatedmeetings, was designed to evaluate process and discuss orientations to completethe RCEP negotiations in this year as expected at the RCEP summit in late 2018.

Atthe event, Vietnam and other ASEAN nations spoke highly of efforts in achievingresults in significant spheres, including goods, services and investment.

ASEANeconomic officials came up with orientations for the talks in the coming time andasked delegations to step up discussion in upcoming rounds towards finalisationin 2019.

Vietnamactively made contributions to the discussion of solutions to address remainingissues of the RCEP talks.

Onthe sidelines of the meeting, Khanh met Thailand’s Acting Minister of CommerceChutima Bunyapraphasara. The two sides discussed issues to bolster thebilateral trade relations and the completion of the RCEP talks.

RCEPwas initiated in November 2012, aiming to establish an economic platformbetween the 10 ASEAN member states and Australia, China, India, Japan, NewZealand and the Republic of Korea, focusing on trade in goods, services andinvestment.

Ifsigned, the deal will create the world’s largest free trade area with a nearly3.5 billion population, accounting for 30 percent of the world’s gross domesticproduct, much bigger than the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement forTrans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

TheRCEP talks have lasted six years with 25 rounds of negotiations.-VNA
VNA

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