Illustrative image (Photo: theaseanpost) Hanoi (VNA) – The European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will hold a summit ofnational leaders for the first time in December to discuss expanding trade and infrastructure assistance as the EU seeks to strengthen ties with ASEAN.
Japan’s Nikkei quoted an EU official as saying that theevent will open in Brussels on December 14, during which both sides want todevelop supply chains. The pandemic stalled importsof medical products and automobile components for the EU, which isexpected to offer infrastructure aid and economic cooperation deals forSoutheast Asian countries.
The EU will encourage Southeast Asian nations tofulfill a major role in the supply chain for the West, based on the idea of"friend-shoring" among nations.
The EU has free trade agreements in forcewith ASEAN member states such as Singapore and Vietnam, while looking toaccelerate similar negotiations with Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia andThailand.
The United Nations data showed that the EU andASEAN traded 250 billion USD worth of goods last year. ASEAN is one ofthe major trading partners of the EU when combining all 10 member states,though the total figure is still less than China, the US and Russia in 2021.
An EU official said the EU will deepencooperation with ASEAN on freedom of navigation in the East Sea and on exportcontrols covering sensitive technology that can be used for military purposes. Theseefforts are based on the union's Indo-Pacific strategy adopted in 2021./.
