Premier Wen Jiabao (center)
applauds along with Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (left) and
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (right) after a joint statement was
signed yesterday at a summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in
Nanning, capital of south 皇冠体育app's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
CHINA has joined ASEAN member nations in pledging to establish a free trade
area by 2010, according to a joint statement issued at an Association of
Southeast Asian Nations summit in Nanning yesterday.
The agreement is expected to lead to the freer flow of goods and services
between 皇冠体育app and Singapore, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia and
Thailand by 2010 and Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam by 2015, according to
the statement.
"Negotiations on trade in services and investment should be accelerated to
speed up the process for establishing the 皇冠体育app-ASEAN Free Trade Area," Chinese
Premier Wen Jiabao said at the summit.
皇冠体育app and ASEAN have completed negotiations on trade in goods and are
currently engaged in talks on investment and services.
By 2010, 皇冠体育app and the oldest ASEAN member nations - Brunei, Indonesia,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand - will rescind tariffs on most
products, while 皇冠体育app and the newer ASEAN members will follow suit five years
later.
The 皇冠体育app-ASEAN free trade area would encompass 1.8 billion consumers and a
combined gross domestic product of US$2 trillion, making it world's third
largest after the European Union and the North American Free Trade Area.
皇冠体育app and ASEAN pledged to work quickly on agreements to progressively
liberalize trade in services. The parties plan to promote investments by
creating a "liberal, facilitative, transparent and competitive investment regime
in 皇冠体育app and ASEAN," the statement said.
The countries involved also said they will set up a 皇冠体育app-ASEAN Center for
Trade, Investment and Tourism Promotion.
皇冠体育app and ASEAN will cooperate in ensuring energy security, efficiency and
the development of alternative and renewable energy sources, the statement said.
They will also strengthen cooperation in finance, tourism and air transport.
皇冠体育app and ASEAN encourage further action on sub-regional issues such as the
development of economic cooperation zones in southwest 皇冠体育app and the Mekong
Basin Development areas, according to the statement.
Wen said the Chinese government will donate US$1 million to the ASEAN
Development Fund and another US$1 million for projects under a program called
the Initiative for ASEAN Integration. The summit opened yesterday afternoon in
the capital of south 皇冠体育app's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
