As the implementation of an
annual forum to evaluate what has been achieved by the European Union (EU) and
ASEAN, the 22nd ASEAN-EU Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting
was held this year held on February 4 and 5, 2015 in Jakarta, where the ASEAN
Secretariat is located. This meeting, as stated by EU Ambassador to Indonesia,
Brunei Darussalam, and ASEAN, Olof Skoog, in Jakarta, on Tuesday (3/2), will
discuss various cooperation, among others, in the field of integrated economy
of the region, connectivity, trade and investment, climate change, human
rights, and higher education.
As he largest partener of ASEAN, this meeting is
considered crucial, and Vietnam is now acting as coordinator, so that in the 22nd
ASEAN-EU JCC meeting, ASEAN will be led by Vietnamese Ambassador, Vu Dang
Dzung, and Permanent Representative to ASEAN. While, European Union will be led
by Raniere SAbutucci, as Head of Southeast Asia Division of EU Foreign
Services, and Jean Clude Boidin as Unit Head of International Cooperation and
Development Directorate of the European Commission.
In more detail, the essence of the meeting that will be
attended by the members of the Permanent Representative Committee of ASEAN, the
ASEAN Secretariat and EU officials as well as representatives from EU member
states, will discuss the latest developments in ASEAN and EU; evaluate trade
and investment relations between ASEAN and EU; including reviewing the progress
of ongoing cooperation programs. And the progress of the implementation of
ASEAN-EU Plan of Action; cooperation in the face of security opposition as well
as EU support in the implementation of the Master Plan of ASEAN Connectivity,
said Skoog, who mentioned about the imposition of death penalty on drug dealers
and the like, which is applied in Indonesia. While, the death penalty policy
has been abandoned by a number of countries, including in the entire European
Union region.
In the field of trade, the relationship between European
Union and ASEAN countries has been strong enough, where trade between the two
regions developed further since the last few decades. In 2012 the total volume
of trade of goods between the two regions reached € 181.4 billion. European Union
is the second-largest trading partner of ASEAN, while ASEAN ranks third as EU
trade partners.
It can be describe that during the period of 2014-2020,
development cooperation from EU to ASEAN reached more than € 190 million which
is divided into three major cooperation frameworks consisting of economic
integration; climate change and disaster management; and facilitation of
dialogue comprehensively (thoroughly).
Former Director General of Information Industrial
Cooperation of the Ministry of Industry, Agus Tjahajana. Stated that the
progress of the discussion of comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement
(CEPA), which has been ongoing since 2010, resumed in 2012, was halted in 2013
and has not reached an agreement, Since the end of last year, it seems that
there is an attempt to hold negotiation more comprehensively, especially
related to the products to be liberalized.
Likewise, EU is more concerned with environmental
aspects, products, and services, and will encourage Indonesia to
accelerate pro-environmental products,
if negotiation is reached. Agus also highlights EU’s insistence on a number of
Indonesian exports to EU, which are quite significant, such as textile products
and fishery products. Indonesia sees that, whether EU has been prepared with
both of these products, and the fate of other Indonesian export products there.
Therefore he believed that EU needs to look at other compensations of the
cooperation when CEPA will be negotiated further. (E)
Business News - February 6, 2015
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