BANGKOK, Sept 6 (TNA) – Prime Minister Gen. Prayut Chan-ocha hoped ASEAN cooperation would drive the ASEAN economy and would help the grouping overcome the global economic problems as he opened the 51st ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM) meeting in Bangkok on Friday morning.
The AEM and related meetings are being held at the Shangri-La Hotel.
Gen. Prayut delivered the opening remarks, citing the achievement that ASEAN set up a working committee to develop the ASEAN Free Trade Areas (AFTA) to eliminate intra-ASEAN import duties.
The bloc initiated the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and it has pushed for the establishment of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), a proposed free trade agreement between ASEAN member states and its six FTA partners (China, Japan, India, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand) by the end of this year.
If the RCEP is accomplished, it will be the world’s largest free-trade agreement, covering a population of 3.5 billion. The combined gross domestic product would be more than US$27.3 trillion, or 32.3 per cent of global GDP.
Gen. Prayut said due to disruptive technological change, ASEAN has to move forward to keep pace with emerging technologies and to build connections in the region and outside the region.
He believed that the AEM meeting will be a driving force for ASEAN to develop further and build connectivity sustainably in all dimensions for the benefit of ASEAN people.
The important thing is that ASEAN has to work together to get through the trade war by increasing trade values among member states, particularly via border trade, he said. (TNA)
