Jakarta(VNA) – Head of the European Union (EU) Delegation to ASEAN Ambassador IgorDriesmans has hailed Vietnam as not only a major bilateral partner but also animportant partner of the EU in cooperation with ASEAN.
Talking with aVietnam News Agency (VNA) correspondent in Indonesia on December 7 ahead of PrimeMinister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visits to Luxembourg, the Netherlands andBelgium for the ASEAN-EU Commemorative Summit marking the 45th anniversary of ASEAN-EU ties from December 9-15, Driesmans also heraldedVietnam as a Southeast Asian nation that the EU has a solid relationship with andthe EU-Vietnam cooperation framework is now robust.
On the meaning of thefirst EU-ASEAN Summit scheduled for December 14, he said it is quite historic that 27 European heads of state andgovernment plus the EU's two institutional presidents will meet with all of theASEAN leaders, which has never happened before.
He affirmed that the summit issignificant because it reinforces the bilateral relationship between the EU andASEAN even further, but also sends a message to the rest of the world that theyare committed to working together. And in the difficult geopolitical times, theytogether chose for more cooperation, more partnership, instead of entering intofurther competition.
About the summit’sagenda, Driesmans revealed that some majorinvestments from the EU into ASEAN will be announced. These will be helpful for thesustainable development of the region, in clean energy, digital transition and sustainable infrastructure.

Asked about the position of ASEAN in theIndo-Pacific strategy that has recently announced by the EU, he said it is a surprise tocount how many times ASEAN was mentioned in the Indo-Pacific strategy, ASEAN isreally central to the EU’s approach to the Indo Pacific, because a strong ASEANis central.
“Strong ASEAN is good for the EU, becauseit helps to stabilise the different geopolitical tensions there are, we needthat security architecture, that institutional anchor within the region. And ofcourse, a strong ASEAN is also good for its own citizens, hence, for itsprosperity, hence, as a trade partner with us. So that's why we've invested somuch into this partnership, because we think it's also good for us in Europe”,he added.
Regarding the EU-ASEAN cooperation in recent years, the ambassador said both sidesestablished a strategic partnership in 2020, which has grown into a verycomprehensive partnership. The EU is actually the most comprehensive partner that ASEAN has with 20 differentdialogues.
“Just this week, there is a conference onhigh speed computing, we work together on the road transport, on climatechange, on human rights, on so many things. So I think the most comprehensive,we're also the biggest contributor financially to different work streams of ASEANas a regional organization,” he noted.
“And we are, of course, a pivotaleconomic partner. We're the third largest trade partner of ASEAN and viceversa. ASEAN is our third largest trade partner. And just if you look at theinflows of investments, the so called foreign direct investment inflows justlast year in 2021, we ranked second. So our relationship, our partnership isvery tight despite that we're on the other side of the world . They were veryconnected in many different ways”.
According to him, the EU and ASEAN need to doeven more together to stimulate respective green transactions.
“We need to become carbon neutral asEurope but eventually also as ASEAN as the world. That's what we have committedto do in the different climate change conferences. So that will require a lotof cooperation, that will require that we work together to strengthen cleanenergy, renewable energy. That means more investment from Europe. That meansalso a stronger political cooperation on these sometimes difficult topics,” he said.
He also suggested working together onconnecting each other. Recently, they signed a comprehensive air transportagreement, which is a very big deal looking into a kind of a single aviationspace, the 37 countries of the EU and ASEAN.
The diplomatic called on working togetherfurther on security aspects, saying that together, they could be strongproponents of a rules-based international order to guarantee peace andstability and work together to promote these basic values./.