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Philippines, cooperation with US AND Japan

Joe Biden hosts Fumio Kishida and Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for an unprecedented trilateral summit. Here's what the trilateral relationship means for Manila

By Walter Minutely

In recent years, the United States has consistently sought to deepen its diplomatic and security relationship in Asia. In this context, an unprecedented trilateral summit between U.S. President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. takes place on Thursday, April 11. The summit offers a unique opportunity to take a deeper look at the nature of relations between these three countries and outline future prospects for cooperation, starting with that in the context of the South China Sea.

This area has turned into a crucial geopolitical theater, with several countries claiming sovereignty over islands and rock formations scattered throughout the region. China has advanced assertive territorial claims, militarizing disputed islands and conducting increasingly assertive maritime operations. On the other hand, the aftermath of the war in Ukraine has also led to a strengthening of security and defense cooperation between the United States and several countries in the region.

Japan and the Philippines occupy a special role, as they have always been pillars of the U.S. security strategy in the Asia-Pacific. The decision to hold this trilateral summit is rooted in the need to coordinate responses to challenges in the South China Sea. 

In addition to the geopolitical dimension, economic cooperation is another key pillar of the trilateral relationship. The United States, Japan, and the Philippines can join forces to foster economic growth through infrastructure development, trade and investment facilitation, and the promotion of inclusive economic policies. In addition, collaboration among these countries can help address new and emerging challenges, such as the digitization of the economy, opening up new opportunities for growth and sustainable development in the region.

Innovation and technology play an increasingly significant role in economic competitiveness and solving global challenges. The United States, Japan and the Philippines can work together to promote the development of advanced technologies while ensuring the security of digital infrastructure and the responsible adoption of new technologies. Through joint research and knowledge exchange, critical challenges such as climate change and food security can be addressed, thereby contributing to prosperity and well-being in the region.

Climate change and marine conservation are urgent challenges that require a global and coordinated response. The United States, Japan, and the Philippines can join forces to promote policies and initiatives to mitigate the effects of climate change, protect marine ecosystems, and promote environmental sustainability. This could include promoting renewable energy, responsible management of fisheries resources, and conservation of marine ecosystems, thus helping to preserve the environment for future generations.

Finally, regional security remains a key priority for all three countries. The United States, Japan and the Philippines intend to enhance their security and defense cooperation through joint military exercises, intelligence exchange and promotion of maritime security. This can help strengthen deterrence in the region while seeking to preserve the crucial goal of economic growth.

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Redazione published in Asean, Global Lens

The EU and Malaysia's forests

Southeast Asia's view on the new regulation that blocks imports of palm oil resulting from deforestation

“Can Europe save forests without killing jobs in Malaysia?” This was asked in a recent New York Times article, evidence that this is a particularly relevant topic not only at a bilateral but also international level. The European Union's looming ban on imports linked to deforestation has been hailed as a new standard to be met in climate policy - a significant step to protect the world's forests, which helps remove planet-killing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere . “The law requires traders to trace the origins of a mind-boggling variety of products: beef and books, chocolate and coal, lipstick and leather. For the European Union, the mandate, which will come into force next year, is a testament to the bloc's role as a global leader on climate change,” writes the New York Times, which however adds: “The move, however, remained caught in conflicting currents about how to address the economic and political trade-offs required by climate change.” In fact, developing countries are certainly not content, with Malaysia and Indonesia among the most explicit in criticizing the new legislation. Together, the two Southeast Asian countries supply 85% of the world's palm oil, one of seven critical products covered by the European Union ban. And I argue that the law puts their economies at risk. In their eyes, writes the New York Times, rich and technologically advanced countries (and former colonial powers) "are once again dictating terms and changing the rules of trade when it suits them". This view accords with developing countries' complaints that the dominant international order neglects their concerns. The dispute over palm oil also contains a central point in the economics of climate change, underlines the US newspaper: the thesis according to which middle- and low-income nations are forced to bear the cost of disastrous environmental changes caused mainly by the most rich. In its 2022 annual survey, the World Resources Institute found that Malaysia was one of the few places where deforestation did not worsen. And perhaps there is a space to protect both climate and economic needs, preserving the fruitful relations between the countries of South-East Asia and the European Union.

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UE-Filippine verso un accordo di libero scambio

Riprendono ufficialmente i colloqui tra il blocco dei 27 e Manila. Ecco su quali basi


Luned’ 18 marzo, l’Unione Europea e le Filippine hanno annunciato ufficialmente la ripresa dei negoziati per un accordo di libero scambio. La Commissione Europea ha parlato di progetto “ambizioso, moderno ed equilibrato, con la sostenibilità al centro”. Aggiungendo che “accordi commerciali come questo sono una pietra miliare della sicurezza economica dell’UE, in quanto aprono nuove opportunità per le imprese e i consumatori, rafforzano le catene di approvvigionamento e promuovono pratiche commerciali sostenibili”. Un accordo di libero scambio con le Filippine, un’economia in espansione di 115 milioni di persone nel cuore della regione indo-pacifica, strategicamente importante, sarebbe un’aggiunta preziosa alla rete di accordi commerciali dell’UE. Il blocco dei 27 e Manila hanno già relazioni commerciali consolidate, con un chiaro potenziale per un rapporto ancora più stretto: secondo i dati ufficiali diffusi da Bruxelles, gli scambi di merci hanno raggiunto un valore di oltre 18,4 miliardi di euro nel 2022, mentre gli scambi di servizi hanno raggiunto un valore di 4,7 miliardi di euro nel 2021. L’UE è anche uno dei maggiori investitori nelle Filippine, con uno stock di investimenti diretti esteri dell’UE nelle Filippine che raggiungerà i 13,7 miliardi di euro nel 2021. Oltre a essere un’economia importante e in crescita, le Filippine possiedono anche importanti riserve di materie prime critiche, tra cui nichel, rame e cromite. “Insieme ai rinnovati sforzi delle Filippine per sfruttare il proprio potenziale di energia rinnovabile e alla recente liberalizzazione per gli investitori stranieri nel settore, le Filippine sono un partner importante nella transizione green”, sottolinea la Commissione Europea. L’UE e le Filippine faranno ora i rispettivi preparativi tecnici per il primo round della ripresa dei negoziati, previsto per la fine dell’anno. L’UE ha già concluso accordi di libero scambio all’avanguardia con due Paesi dell’ASEAN (Singapore e Vietnam), sta negoziando accordi di libero scambio con l’Indonesia e la Thailandia e sta effettuando una valutazione per un ulteriore accordo con la Malesia. Le Filippine godono attualmente di preferenze commerciali nell’ambito del Sistema di preferenze generalizzate + dell’UE, un regime speciale di incentivi per lo sviluppo sostenibile e il buon governo che garantisce l’accesso in esenzione doganale al mercato dell’UE per due terzi delle linee tariffarie.

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China's role in ASEAN trade

In recent years, Beijing and Southeast Asian countries have signed a series of economic cooperation agreements

Editorial by Lorenzo Riccardi, Managing Partner RsA Asia

Beijing's role in Asia is promoted through the volume of trade and the number of bilateral and multilateral agreements. In the Asia-Pacific region, China has signed 42 double taxation agreements, ten free trade agreements, and has promoted multilateral free trade agreements with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) nations, Gulf economies (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates), and Northeast Asian countries (Japan and Korea). The number of tax treaties, investment agreements, and free trade agreements is proportionally much higher in the neighboring countries of the Eastern area compared to other regions of the planet. This determines an accelerated trend in economic relations, especially with the primary trading partner: the ASEAN bloc. To strengthen the trade partnership, China and ASEAN have signed a series of agreements on economic cooperation over the past 20 years. These include a comprehensive agreement on global economic cooperation between ASEAN and China in 2002, the establishment of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) implemented in several phases between 2005 and 2010, the China-Singapore Free Trade Agreement in force since 2008, an ASEAN-China investment agreement in 2009, the ASEAN-Hong Kong SAR China Free Trade Agreement in force since 2019, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership signed in 2020, and the free trade agreement with Cambodia in force since 2022. Beijing has also signed mutual visa exemption agreements between 2023 and 2024 with Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. A visa-on-arrival procedure is expected for Chinese citizens traveling to Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, and Myanmar, and a simplified e-visa procedure for Vietnam. Among the ASEAN countries, only the Philippines require advance visas for Chinese visitors. In China-ASEAN trade, Kuala Lumpur is the largest exporter with USD 102 billion in data from Chinese customs in 2023 (almost four times the volume of Italian exports to China), while Hanoi is the largest importer of Chinese products with about USD 137 billion. ASEAN and Beijing grow beyond the global average, and China has its primary trading partner in Southeast Asia with USD 911 billion in trade in December 2023, surpassing the aggregated import and export volume recorded by the People's Republic with the European Union (USD 783 billion) and the United States (USD 664 billion).

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L’AUSTRALIA PUNTA SULL’ASEAN

Pubblichiamo qui uno stralcio del discorso della Ministra degli Esteri Penny Wong al summit di Melbourne tra Australia e ASEAN

Quando l’ASEAN era ancora agli albori, circa cinquant’anni fa, il nostro visionario Primo Ministro Gough Whitlam riconobbe che l’ASEAN era già centrale nella gestione delle sfide della regione, e capì che lo sarebbe diventata sempre di più. Per questo motivo, si impegnò con entusiasmo a favore dell’ASEAN e ben presto l’Australia divenne il primo paese non membro a stabilire relazioni formali, quando il Primo Ministro Whitlam firmò per l’Australia come primo partner di dialogo dell’ASEAN. Il Primo Ministro Whitlam sapeva che, sebbene gran parte della nostra storia fosse in Europa, la nostra casa e il nostro futuro sono nella nostra regione. Ha riconosciuto il ruolo che il Sud-Est asiatico avrebbe avuto nel destino dell’Australia e del mondo. A sua volta, Whitlam vedeva l’Australia come “un vero partecipante al destino della regione”. E, come sempre, pensando al futuro, disse: “Non si può tornare indietro da questo impegno”. In effetti, è stato dimostrato che aveva ragione. E il nostro impegno è cresciuto fino a diventare un Partenariato strategico globale tra l’ASEAN e l’Australia, la formalizzazione dell’impegno permanente dell’Australia nei confronti della centralità dell’ASEAN. La formalizzazione di una verità che l’Australia non solo riconosce, ma abbraccia: condividiamo una regione e un futuro. Siamo legati dalla geografia che il destino ha scelto per noi e siamo rafforzati dal partenariato che abbiamo scelto per noi stessi. Le nostre nazioni e i nostri popoli si arricchiscono con gli scambi commerciali. Le nostre nazioni e i nostri popoli beneficiano della pace, della stabilità e della sicurezza che costruiamo insieme. La nostra fede nel successo condiviso è alla base dell’impegno dell’Australia per un maggiore partenariato economico. Abbiamo tutti la responsabilità di plasmare la regione che vogliamo condividere: pacifica, stabile e prospera. I nostri partenariati di difesa di lunga data nella regione, anche con gli Stati membri dell’ASEAN, non costruiscono solo interoperabilità, ma anche amicizia e comprensione. I Paesi della nostra regione dipendono dagli oceani, dai mari e dai fiumi per il loro sostentamento e per il commercio, comprese le rotte marittime libere e aperte nel Mar Cinese Meridionale. Per questo sono lieta di annunciare che nei prossimi quattro anni stanzieremo altri 64 milioni di dollari, di cui 40 milioni di dollari di nuovi finanziamenti, per potenziare i partenariati marittimi australiani nel Sud-Est asiatico. Sono inoltre lieta di annunciare un ulteriore stanziamento di 222,5 milioni di dollari per sostenere la resilienza nella subregione del Mekong. Una seconda fase del Partenariato Mekong-Australia porterà investimenti nella sicurezza idrica, nella resilienza ai cambiamenti climatici, nella lotta alla criminalità transnazionale e nel rafforzamento della leadership subregionale.

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ASEAN and India, the bond grows stronger

Association secretary general's trip to New Delhi brings bloc closer to Asian giant

At the invitation of the Government of the Republic of India, H.E. Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, Secretary-General of ASEAN, paid a working visit to India from Feb. 12-15, 2024. February. The purpose of the visit was to further advance the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSC) by reactivating engagements across the spectrum of ASEAN's three community pillars and promoting ASEAN diplomacy and visibility in India. Rooted in centuries of civil ties, maritime connectivity and cross-cultural exchanges, the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership continued to gain momentum. During the visit, India reaffirmed to the ASEAN Secretary-General its commitment to work with ASEAN and its partners in support of peace, stability and prosperity in the region. India expressed its unwavering support for the centrality of ASEAN and the ASEAN Indo-Pacific Perspectives (AOIP) as the principle and framework for promoting cooperation in the region. The visit highlighted India's position as ASEAN's eighth largest trading partner, with total trade of $113.08 billion, accounting for 2.94 percent of ASEAN's total trade. Meanwhile, foreign direct investment flows from India to ASEAN totaled $0.68 billion in 2022. To further maximize the potential of ASEAN-India economic cooperation while at the same time geo-economic uncertainties, the ASEAN Secretary-General has communicated to India the need for both sides to further increase trade and investment including through full and effective utilization of the ASEAN-India Free Trade Area (AIFTA), early utilization of the ASEAN-India Free Trade Area (AIFTA), early conclusion of the ASEAN-India Agreement on Trade in Goods (AITIGA) review negotiations, and India's potential participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). Meanwhile, in the tourism sector, discussions during the visit noted a significant increase in the number of visitor arrivals from India to ASEAN to 2.38 million by 2022. This reflects the positive signs of the post-COVID-19 recovery, which is expected to further benefit both sides through the development of sustainable tourism and collaboration on marketing initiatives to present ASEAN as a unique tourism destination for the Indian market.

Click here for the full report

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ASEAN's Vision on 2024

We publish here an excerpt from the final document of the January 28-29 meeting in Luang Prabang, Laos, between ASEAN foreign ministers 

On January 29, 2024, the Lao Foreign Ministers' retreat was held in Luang Prabang, Lao PDR. We had in-depth discussions on the implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and priorities for the Lao chairmanship in 2024, as well as concrete and sustainable ways to further strengthen the ASEAN Community, ASEAN's unity, centrality and resilience amid regional and global challenges. We also exchanged views on ASEAN's external relations and recent regional and international developments of common interest and concern. 

We reaffirmed our strong commitment to upholding regionalism and multilateralism, and stressed the importance of adhering to the key principles, shared values and norms enshrined in the United Nations Charter, the ASEAN Charter, the Declaration on the Zone of Peace, Freedom and Neutrality, the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon Free Zone Treaty (SEANWFZ).

We reaffirmed our shared commitment to maintaining and promoting peace, security and stability in the region, and to the peaceful resolution of disputes, including full respect for legal and diplomatic processes, without resort to the threat or use of force, in accordance with the principles of international law.

We discussed the developments in Myanmar and reaffirmed our unified position that the five-point consensus remains our main reference for addressing the political crisis in Myanmar, with the sole objective of restoring peace, stability and a Myanmar-led comprehensive political resolution. We welcomed the ASEAN leaders' reviews and decisions on the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus Five-Point Consensus, adopted at the 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits in 2022 and the 43rd ASEAN Summit in 2023. 

We reaffirmed ASEAN's commitment to assist Myanmar in finding a peaceful, comprehensive and lasting solution to the ongoing conflict, as Myanmar remains an integral part of ASEAN. ASEAN member states welcomed the appointment of H.E. Alounkeo KITTIKHOUN, former Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister of the Lao People's Democratic Republic, as the ASEAN Chair's Special Envoy for Myanmar for 2024, as we continue our efforts to promote progress in the implementation of the Partnership Agreement with Myanmar.

We appreciated his efforts to date to reach out to stakeholders and trust his willingness to help the people of Myanmar find a Myanmar-led solution toward a peaceful, stable, and unified Myanmar that contributes to peace and prosperity in the region.

Read the full document here

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Redazione published in Global Lens, Thailand

Thailand's Landbridge will bring East and West closer

We publish here an excerpt of the speech by the Prime Minister of Thailand Srettha Thavisin on the Landbridge project

Thailand's Landbridge mega infrastructure project is an effort towards creating seamless connectivity to boost long-term growth prospects in the region and is fully in line with my Government's proactive economic diplomacy.

The project will include the construction of deep-sea ports in Ranong, on Thailand's Andaman coast, and Chumphon, in the Gulf of Thailand. Located approximately 90 kilometers apart, the two ports will operate under the “one port, two sides” concept, supported by a highway and double-track railway lines to connect the ports with each other and with the country's national network.

Each port will have the capacity to handle up to 20 million standard containers per year. The plan also includes the installation of a network of oil and gas pipelines. The total estimated cost is 1 trillion baht ($28 billion).

The Landbridge project represents an unprecedented opportunity to improve connectivity between the Pacific and Indian Oceans and to link economic activity between the two regions.

It promises to facilitate greater movement of goods and people between East and West, offering a viable route for maritime trade beyond the Straits of Malacca.

Once completed, the Landbridge is expected to reduce travel times by an average of four days between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific and reduce transportation costs by 15%. For a company shipping goods from Chennai to Yokohama, for example, this could mean savings of up to five days and 4% on costs.

Those familiar with Thailand's logistical development might see the Landbridge as a modern reworking of a century-old proposal to dredge a canal across the Kra Isthmus.

Although it was originally approved in 1989 as part of Thailand's Southern Economic Corridor, various considerations have left this project unrealized to this day. Now the timing will align well with the growth prospects of the economies of the Indian subcontinent and Africa.

Plans call for the first phase of construction to begin in September 2025 and last until October 2030. Contractors will likely be able to bid on the project between April and June 2025.

The Landbridge is expected to bring benefits of 1.3 trillion baht to the Thai economy and increase the country's annual gross domestic product growth rate by 1.5% through increased export opportunities and the creation of 280,000 jobs . It will also bring new development opportunities for other provinces in southern Thailand.

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ASEAN and China: the bond remains deep

Southeast Asia and Beijing are linked by deep trade entanglements. And this will not change even in 2024

By Lorenzo Riccardi

In October 2023, Indonesia inaugurated its first high-speed rail network, with a trip by President Joko Widodo on the bullet train between the capital Jakarta and the city of Bandung. A $7.3 billion investment for a 140-kilometer route built by Chinese and Indonesian companies that allows travel at peak speeds of 350 kilometers per hour, facilitating trade and logistics in the region.

November 2023 saw the launch of the first high-speed passenger train linking Beijing, the Chinese capital, and Vientiane, the capital of Laos.

This is a long tourist route on the China-Laos railway, adding to the routes between Yunnan Province and the ASEAN region inaugurated in the previous two years. A project symbolic of Southeast Asia's relationship with the People's Republic of China that is part of the Belt and Road Initiative, with the goal of promoting the movement of people and goods between southern China and Southeast Asia. 

This infrastructure is part of a larger project that will lead to connecting with 5,500 kilometers of high-speed network Beijing with Singapore through Laos, Thailand, Malaysia and linking the capitals Vientiane, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore to promote the region's logistics, trade and tourism.

The Belt and Road Initiative, from which Rome recently exited, includes 42 of the continent's 49 nations in Asia and all 10 Southeast Asian countries from Brunei to Indonesia.

For China, the ASEAN region occupies a key geopolitical position, serving as a crossroads for major sea routes and attracting the interest of every global power. 

Economically, the region's aggregate gross domestic product exceeds $3.6 trillion, driven by some of the highest growth: 4.2 percent in 2023 and 4.6 percent in 2024 according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates.

Southeast Asia's role in global supply chains, rich natural resources and trade agreements highlight the region's strategic importance, while infrastructure development and connectivity initiatives increase its global relevance.

According to IMF estimates in the October outlook, China will grow at 5 percent in 2023 and 4.2 percent in 2024, while variations in GDP trends are observed for ASEAN countries with Cambodia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam showing the highest growth rates for 2023-2024.

Brunei is the region's smallest economy and shows a decline of 0.8 percent in 2023, with a notable recovery to 3.5 in 2024, indicating a turnaround. Cambodia performs the best, with gross domestic product increasing by 5.6 percent in 2023 and further increasing by 6.1 percent in 2024.

The Philippines, forecast a change of 5.3 percent in the current year, and a further increase to 5.9 percent in 2024, confirming the highest growth in the ASEAN-5 Group of the five countries with the largest population and GDP.

Indonesia and Laos maintain a steady trend, with Jakarta at +5 percent for both 2023 and 2024 and Vientiane at 4 percent over the two-year period. Malaysia shows incremental figures at 4 percent in the current year and 4.3 percent for next year.

An increase of 2.6 percent is estimated for Burma in both 2023 and 2024, while Singapore, which has the largest GDP per capita, is estimated to expand at 1 and 2.1 percent in the two-year period 2023-2024.

Finally, the International Monetary Fund forecasts a gradual increase over the two years for Thailand, with growth of 2.7 and 3.2 percent; Vietnam, among the region's large economies, has the largest delta with GDP + 4.7 percent in 2023 and a projection of 5.8 percent in 2024.

ASEAN and Beijing grow above the global average, which stands at +3 percent in 2023 and 2.9 percent next year. 

China has Southeast Asia as its top trading partner with $826 billion in trade as of November 2023, above Beijing's aggregate import and export volume recorded with the European Union ($716 billion) and the United States ($607 billion) in the first eleven months of the year. 

Kuala Lumpur, which has just signed mutual visa-free entry agreements with China is the largest exporter with $94 billion in November Chinese customs data (nearly four times the volume of Italian exports to China, which stands at $24.9 billion) while Hanoi is the largest importer of Chinese products with about $124 billion.

To promote partnership in trade, China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have signed a series of agreements on economic cooperation with a large number of bilateral and multilateral treaties signed over the past 20 years.

-Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and China: Signed in 2002, this agreement served as the foundation for economic cooperation between Beijing and ASEAN member countries. It outlined the principles and areas of cooperation, including trade, investment and economic integration.

-ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA): Implemented in several stages between 2005 and 2010, the ACFTA promoted the establishment of a free trade area between China and ASEAN with the reduction or elimination of tariffs on a wide range of goods, encouraging greater trade flows.

-Agreement on Trade in Goods and Comprehensive Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and China: Signed in 2004, this agreement introduced specific provisions for the reduction and elimination of duties on various goods traded between China and ASEAN countries.

-ASEAN-China Investment Agreement: Signed in 2009, it aims to promote bilateral investment flows by establishing a framework for investment protection and facilitation.

-ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Update Protocol: Signed in 2015, this protocol further enhanced trade relations between China and ASEAN with tariff reductions and addressing issues related to trade in goods, services and investment.

-Protocol amending the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and China: Signed in 2015 with the aim of deepening economic integration by addressing issues such as customs procedures, certificate of origin rules and trade facilitation.

-ASEAN-Hong Kong, China Free Trade Agreement: effective as of 2019.

-Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership: (RCEP) entered into force in 2022 is a multilateral free trade agreement in the Asia-Pacific region. It is considered one of the largest trade agreements in the world as it involves a large number of countries: the 10 members of ASEAN and their six trading partners-China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and India.

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ASEAN moves closer to Africa

Not only Europe, the Americas and the Gulf. Southeast Asia also strengthens ties with the African continent

ASEAN and South Africa held the inaugural meeting of the ASEAN-South Africa Joint Sectoral Cooperation Committee (ASA-JSCC) at ASEAN headquarters on Nov. 30. The meeting marked the launch of the first formal sectoral dialogue partnership on the African continent and thus realizes the expansion of ASEAN's external relations to all continents of the world. ASEAN foreign ministers conferred sector dialogue partner status on South Africa at the 56th Foreign Ministers' Meeting last July in Jakarta. Last week's meeting adopted the ASA-JSCC mandate and deliberated on several areas of future cooperation. On the economic front, the meeting encouraged South Africa to explore practical cooperation in areas of mutual interest and benefit, including trade and investment, public-private partnership, strengthening micro, small and medium enterprises, tourism, transport, energy the critical minerals and mineral resources sector, information and communication technologies, food security, halal industry, sustainable agriculture, blue economy, digital economy, fisheries, aquaculture and forestry, research and innovation, and science and technology. The meeting also noted the four key priorities of the economic partnership that ASEAN would like to pursue with South Africa, namely (1) strengthening ASEAN market integration; (2) sustainability and decarbonization; (3) digital transformation; and (4) inclusiveness of economic systems and people-to-people exchanges. Regarding the socio-cultural sphere, it is intended to explore cooperation in the areas of health, women's empowerment, education and climate change, but also to intensify efforts to improve people-to-people contacts through exchange programs involving youth, students, media and artists, as well as scholarship programs. Both sides also agreed to develop the ASEAN-South Africa Areas of Practical Cooperation, which will serve as a framework for achieving shared goals and related priorities in the coming years. The development is very significant because it testifies to the strengthened interconnection between ASEAN and several areas of the world with broad growth potential, including Africa.

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Toward an Italian strategy for the Indo-Pacific

Italy moves to formalize its engagement in the region

Editorial by Gabriele Abbondanza, University of Madrid and University of Sydney

Italy is getting closer to the Indo-Pacific. In spite of geographic distance and important challenges close to its borders, Rome could formulate an Italian strategy for the Indo-Pacific, thereby strengthening ties with this macro-region.

As highlighted by the most recent research, Italy has been approaching the Indo-Pacific for about 20 years. In the meantime, much has changed: the region’s economies are growing at an enviable pace, territorial disputes have risen in many regions - the South China Sea is emblematic - and the economic crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic have underscored the fragilities of the international community.

Nevertheless, Italy has continued to pursue its own “informal approach” to the Indo-Pacific. Trade interchanges have increased by more than one-sixth in the last 10 years, and defense-related interchanges by nearly 45%. The strategic collaboration has strengthened joint training, defense of navigation and overflight rights, interoperability, and strategic projects ( see IPO,GCAP, and IMEC, among other examples). Finally, Rome has formed partnerships with many key players in the region, including PIF, Vietnam, Korea, IORA, ASEAN, UAE, Japan and India.

Given the undoubtedly ripe time, Italy is moving to formalize its commitment. Such a potential strategy, currently under discussion, would rationalize the Italian approach, formalizing it for the benefit of European and North American allies and Indo-Pacific partners, and ensure the constancy of such engagement well into the future.

This journey began with the creation of an Indo-Pacific Committee at the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Chamber of Deputies, thanks to the efforts of Hon. Paolo Formentini, who was also supported in this area by opposition representatives such as Hon. Lia Quartapelle Procopio. The Committee’s activities -which I had the pleasure of contributing to with the inaugural hearing - will ensure expert advice to support parliamentary debates.

Other events in support of an Italian strategy - which is inclusive and multilateral in nature, and respectful of the many existing sensitivities - included a conference at the Senate that saw Sen. Francesco Giacobbe, Hon.Formentini, myself, Dr. Karolina Muti and Dr. Alessio Piazza explain the benefits of such an objective to an audience of experts. The ambassadors present, in particular, have emphasized the importance of an Italian strategy with these characteristics for Indo-Pacific relations.

There still is a long way to go and there are several developments that could distract the attention of the government which always has the last word on the subject, however, the conditions are favorable and it is therefore with guarded optimism that we can look to the future of Italy’s relations with the Indo-Pacific.

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Italy and ASEAN, Partnership growing stronger

At the Farnesina, a new high-level meeting with the leadership of the bloc of Southeast Asian countries

Editorial by Maria Tripodi, Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation

On December 7, I received the Deputy Secretary General of ASEAN, Michael Tene, at the Farnesina. The meeting was part of our country's ongoing collaboration with ASEAN to implement the Development Partnership launched in late 2020. In a little more than three years, our Partnership with ASEAN has achieved significant results, enabling the implementation of multiple training initiatives for the benefit of Southeast Asian countries in a wide range of strategic areas: from security to the environment, and from the protection of cultural heritage to sustainable development. With Deputy Secretary General Tene, I renewed our common commitment to enriching the Partnership with new projects-many of which are already under negotiation with the Secretariat and member states-with a shared mode of ownership and in areas of common interest. These include many fields that are essential for the stability and security of states in contemporary reality: cybercrime, combating transnational crime, promoting legality, space, food security, energy transition, and prevention and management of natural disasters. This is in the knowledge that only together can the growing threats to peace, the protection of the rules-based international order, and sustainable development, which are also fueled by the multiplication of crisis theaters around the world, be effectively addressed. Indeed, ASEAN represents a model of regional integration in a key geo-strategic position for maintaining peace and shared prosperity in the Indo-Pacific. In this context, Italy stands ready to collaborate with the incoming Laotian Chairmanship of ASEAN, focusing on the issues of connectivity and resilience, with the hope that the country can build on the important achievements of the current Indonesian Chairmanship, especially in the areas of regional integration and investment. We trust that Laos will also ensure continuity in Indonesia's efforts to manage the serious crisis that has plagued Myanmar for nearly three years, following the February 1, 2021 coup d'état, with possible repercussions for stability in the area.

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