The 5th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Economic
Ministers' Meeting (EMM) issued a Chair Statement soon after
it concluded with fruitful results Thursday afternoon in
Dalian of northeast China's Liaoning Province.
The Statement outlines consensus on important
issues. Its full text follows:
Fifth ASEM Economic Ministers
Meeting
Chair Statements
Dalian, China, 23rd - 24th July 2003
1. The fifth SAEM Economic Ministers
Meeting (EMM5) was held in Dalian, China on 23rd and 24th
July 2003. It was attended by ministers for economic
affairs, trade and industry from 10 Asian countries, with
Viet Nam and Japan acting as Asian coordinators, and the
fifteen Member States of the European Union, coordinated by
Italy, in its role as President of the Council of the
European Union, and the European Commissioner responsible
for Trade. The meeting was chaired by H.E. Mr. Lu Fuyuan,
Minister of Commerce of China.
2. H.E. Mme. Wu Yi, Vice Premier of China
attended the opening ceremony and made a welcoming remark.
In her speech, H.E. Mme. Wu briefed the meeting on the
economic achievement China has made and is going to make
this year in spite of the difficulties caused by the
outbreak of SARS epidemic. She stressed the important role
ASEM has played in creating a new Asia-Europe partnership
and building a greater understanding between the peoples of
both regions. She further emphasized the significant
contribution that the EMM5 can bring to the multilateral
trading system, in particular, to the forthcoming 5th WTO
Ministerial Conference to be held in Cancun, Mexico in
September 2003. She also expressed the hope that ministers
at the EMM5 could further discuss and explore the great
potentials for further economic cooperation by identifying
new priorities and directions for ASEMs future work.
3. Ministers welcomed the
participation of Amb. Sun Zhenyu, Permanent Representative
of China to WTO, who briefed the meeting on the latest
development of the WTO negotiation in Geneva, and of Mr.
Kyu-Huang Lee, the representative of the 8th Asia Europe
Business Forum (AEBF8), and of Mr. Toyoo Gyohten and Mr.
Zhang Yunling, members of ASEM Task Force on Closer Economic
Partnership.
Global economic
developments
4. Ministers had an
extensive discussion on the prospects for the global
economic development and their impact on both Asia and
Europe. They noted that the recent outbreak of Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) has caused serious damages to
economic activities in short term in Asia. Services
involving face-to-face contact have been dealt a severe blow
by the widespread fear of infection through such
interactions. Tourism, transportation (particularly
airlines), and retail business have been the hardest hit
sectors. However, ministers concluded that the adverse
impact on the medium and long-term economic development of
the region could be minimized if effective and necessary
measures and actions in the area of public health, trade,
tourism and movement of goods and business people could be
implemented. Ministers also observed that the growth
prospects for the EU economy remain adversely affected by
international developments, contributing to low business and
consumer confidence. A moderate recovery is expected in the
second half of 2003. The EU intends to deepen its structural
reform agenda further, and sees a critical part of its
strategy to foster growth.
5.
Ministers noted the continuing evolution of the RTAs among
ASEM partners. In Asia, the process taking place mainly in
the form of ASEAN+X has been strengthened, and
the moves towards economic integration and
institutionalization in Asia are becoming increasingly
active. The plurilateral and bilateral FTAs among Asian ASEM
partners have been in process, such as, the Republic of
Singapore and Japan reached the Agreement for A New-Age
Economic Partnership, and China and ASEAN signed the
Framework Agreement on ASEAN-China FTA. Ministers emphasized
that bilateral or regional initiatives on ASEAN-China FTA.
Ministers emphasized that bilateral or regional initiatives
should not be favored over multilateralism, as well as the
need to ensure that all agreements are compatible with WTO
obligations. The EU highlighted certain interesting aspects
of their model of integration and suggested possible areas
where it might be relevant and interesting to intensify the
sharing of experiences with Asian partners. Ministers agreed
that ASEM should further exchange developments and views on
RTA/FTAs and regional integration.
6. Ministers were briefed on the current
status of the enlargement process of the European Union,
with particular emphasis being given to the expected
positive impact of enlargement on trade relations with Asian
partners. The European Commission carefully noted the
concerns expressed by Ministers regarding the potential
adverse effects for Asian partners on trade and investment
with the enlarged EU, in particular the newly-acceding
Member States, by making full use of existing mechanisms for
consultations including those under WTO agreements. Noting
such concerns on the part of Asian exporters, the EU pledged
to continue to be an open trading partner, with an expanded
single market of 450 million people sharing the same tariffs
and trade rules from the date of their accession. Asian
exporters who already meet current EU standards will
therefore have immediate access to an even larger market.
Asian trading partners were reassured that there could be
many potential benefits for their trade and investment with
an enlarged EU, including a lower average level of tariffs
and expanded quotas, as well as the application of the
EUs Generalized System of Preferences by the new
countries. Any potential trade diversion or creation effect
should already have substantially taken place over the past
few years in the run-up to enlargement.
WTO
7. Ministers
acknowledged that progress had been made in some areas of
the ongoing WTO negotiations, but expressed concerns on the
slow advancing of other issues. They noted in particular
that some important deadlines on the substantial issues had
been missed, that this had posed serious concerns over the
road to the Cancun Ministerial Conference and that efforts
were needed on all sides to ensure the necessary progress to
conclude these negotiations in time.
8. Ministers recalled the unique role played
by ASEM partners in contributing to a better and balanced
international economic environment after the successful
launch of the DDA. They reiterated their strong commitments
to a strong, open, transparent and fair multilateral trading
system under the WTO and highlighted the importance of the
successful conclusion of an ambitious round to revitalize
the world economy through further trade liberalization and
strengthening of the rules-based multilateral trading
system.
9. Ministers reiterated
the importance to continue addressing the development
dimension and the needs of developing and least-developed
country members which are at the core of the DDA. In this
context, Ministers recognized that more efforts are needed
to address development issues in the DDA, and stressed the
need to further strengthen the work on technical assistance
and capacity building activities so as to help developing
countries participate more effectively in the DDA
negotiations and implement the WTO agreements.
10. Ministers stressed that it
was imperative for Asia and Europe to join hands in meeting
those challenges and showing strong political will to
cooperate constructively in all elements of the Doha work
program. Ministers agreed to work closely in order to ensure
a positive outcome in Cancun with a view to achieving a
single undertaking agreement which is broad and
well-balanced on market access, rules making and
development-related issues before January 1 2005 as mandated
by Doha Ministerial Declaration. In the run up to Cancun,
ASEM members urged all WTO members to express more
flexibility and accountability to engage in the negotiations
and work on the substantial issues in a positive manner, and
thereby to ensure the necessary decisions prior to and at
Cancun itself on issues such as agriculture and
non-agricultural market access, TRIPS and public health,
special and differential treatment, implementation, dispute
settlement understanding, environment, geographical
indications and all the four Singapore issues and other
elements of Work Program.
11.
Ministers highlighted the fruitful discussion on the DDA
among ASEM WTO experts (January 2003 in Hanoi and June 2003
in Paris) and the ASEM symposium on multilateral and
regional economic relations held in March 2003 in Tokyo.
They are looking forward to the success of the high level
conference on agriculture cooperation to be held in China.
12. Ministers decided to
continue the meetings of WTO experts during the coming year
and tasked Economic coordinators to consult with ASEM
partners, after the Cancun Ministerial Conference, to
determine the nature and scope or the consultative process.
13. Ministers reiterated their
support for universal membership of the WTO, and agreed that
current accession negotiation of Viet Nam should be
accelerated, aiming at mutually acceptable market access
commitments and adherence to WTO rules and by adequately
taking into account their specific conditions and needs.
14. ASEM partners engaged
themselves to ensure necessary process to make Cancun
Ministerial Conference a success.
Review of the Economic Pillar
15. In their last meeting in Copenhagen,
Ministers tasked Economic Coordinators with a review of the
current priorities and activities carried out under the ASEM
Economic Pillar in order to formulate recommendations for
EMM 5. Ministers endorsed the SOMTI 9 Recommendations on the
Review of the Economic Pillar (Annex 1) and adopted the
following findings and propositions in the Paper:
The broad mandate and
objectives of the Economic Pillar remain appropriate;
The mandate and
objectives of the Economic Pillar will remain the subject of
continued reflection, in conjunction with the work of the
Task Force on a Closer Economic Partnership;
Economic Ministers continue to meet on
an annual basis when there is a substantive agenda for
Ministers;
Senior
Officials on Trade and Investment meet annually, regardless
of the EMM timetable, and devote the essential part of their
meetings to policy debate, while fulfilling their essential
tasks of preparing for EMM and overseeing the progress and
implementation of all activates under the Economic Pillar;
The Economic
Coordinators will be charged with an enhanced coordination
role to confer with ASEM partners and identify issues for
SOMTI policy debate or procedural decision;
The achievements under the Economic
Pillar in creating opportunities for sustained dialogue
among experts in particular fields are of lasting value.
Such dialogues will be maintained and focused on carefully
defined, time-limited projects. Projects facilitators should
report in writing to Senior Officials on Trade and
Investment annually, and at least one month in advance of
Senior Officials Meeting on Trade and Investment (SOMTI),
and should keep Economic Coordinators fully informed of
progress at all times.
16.
Ministers also adopted the recommendations regarding
implementation of the Trade Facilitation Action Plan (TFAP),
future ASEM activities relating to investment and the WTO,
and further involvement of business communities, which were
discussed in corresponding agenda items and addressed
respectively in Annex I.
17.
Ministers also recognized that there are other areas of
cooperation that may serve to complement efforts in
intensifying trade and investment flows between Asia and
Europe, including areas of transportation, information and
communications technology (ICT) and human resource
development (HRD).
18.
Ministers encouraged all Partners and related fora to
follow-up with the recommendations in their future work and
tasked SMOTI to monitor the implementation of the
recommendations and report the outcomes to EMM 6 in 2004.
Ministers welcomed the proposal by SOMTI to share their
recommendations with ASEM Task Force on Closer Economic
Partnership and believed that further reflection by
interested parties on the activities and orientations of the
Economic Pillar would enable ASEM to regain dynamism and
focus.
Activities on TFAP and
IPAP
19. Ministers reviewed progress
in the implementation of TFA. They welcomed the achievements
made in the different priority areas of TFAP towards the
realization of TFAP deliverables for 2002-2004. Ministers in
particular noted the outcomes of the following work,
seminars and meetings held in TFAP areas:
The 8th ASEM Meeting on Standards and
Conformity Assessment in Brussels Belgium, 10th 12th
December 2002;
The 2nd
ASEM Seminar on Electronic Commerce in Helsinki Finland,
23rd September 2002;
The
2nd ASEM TFAP Electronic Commerce Officials Meeting in
Helsinki Finland, 24th September 2002;
The informal meeting on SPS held in
conjunction with the 26th meeting of the SPS Committee in
Geneva on 3rd April 2003;
The TFAP report on Customs Procedures,
which reviewed members progress in paperless customs
procedures and adoption of modern customs techniques, such
as risk management.
20.
Ministers expected the successful outcomes of up-coming ASEM
meetings with TFAP agenda, including the 5th ASEM Customs
DG-Commissioner Meeting in Seoul, Korea, the Customs
Procedures Working Group meeting and the 3rd
Customs-Business Seminar on Simplification and Harmonization
of Customs Procedures in Jakarta, Indonesia. The
Customs-Business Seminar is a direct response to a
particular deliverable of the customs area of TFAP.
Ministers expressed their sincere appreciation to Asian
Development Bank (ADB) for the organizations generous
support to the up-coming seminar as well as two previous
occasions in the past.
21.
Ministers acknowledged the progress made by the past ASEM
IPAP activities in enhancing mutual understanding of
investment framework on both regions. Recognizing the
continuing importance of increasing investment flows between
the ASEM partners and the need for a focused, ambitious
framework, Ministers endorsed the recommendations made by
SOMOTI for future investment related activities and
requested the Investment Contact Point (ICP) Shepherds to
co-ordinate the actions taking place under the new framework
during the coming year.
22. In
view of the economic scales of ASEM Partners and great
complementarity between the two regions, Ministers
anticipated that more concrete outcomes in trade and
investment promotion are attainable in future. In this
connection, Ministers decided that facilitators of TFAP
priority areas should submit to SOMTI progress report of
their respective areas by May 2004, including summaries of
progress, recommendations emerged, next steps planned and
guidance required from SOMTI. Ministers also asked Economic
Coordinators to examine those reports alongside various
suggestions made by ASEM partners in certain sectors
relating to trade and investment facilitation, as well as
other potential areas of economic cooperation which have yet
to be explored in the context of ASEM. The key criteria for
this examination should be the availability of ASEM partners
to take responsibility for each project and the possibility
to fill potential gaps in the current activities. The
results of the examination will be submitted to next SOMTI
for endorsement, then to EMM 6 for adoption.
ASEM Task Force on Closer Economic Relations
23. Ministers welcomed that ASEM Task
Force on Closer Economic Partnership convened its first
meeting in Madrid Spain on 6th May 2003. Ministers
informally exchanged views with the members of the Task
Force present on their perspectives on the ASEM economic
pillar. Bearing in mind that the Task Force would submit
their recommendations in a report to Leaders in 2004,
Ministers called for all parties to provide the Task Force
with inputs, as appropriate, in the run-up to ASEM V.
Interaction with
business
24. The representative of the
AEBF 8 briefed Ministers on the recommendations made during
AEBF 7 as well as the preparatory status of AEBF 8, which
will take place in Seoul Korea in fall 2003. Ministers
discussed the recommendations of AEBF 7 and welcomed the
efforts of some ASEM fora, including inter alia SOMTI and
IEG, in addressing the recommendations of AEBF.
25. Ministers encouraged that
business sector be involved more consistently in the ASEM
work at all levels, and that views of business to ASEM
priority objectives should be given full weight in selecting
economic pillar projects. Ministers noted that in respond to
such a call, Asia-Europe High Level Economic Forum was
successfully held in Dalian on 22nd July 2003.
Next meeting
26. Ministers agreed that the sixth EMM (EMM6)
be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands from 16-17 September 2004.
Ministers also agreed to report the outcomes of EMM 5 to the
fifth Asia-Europe Meeting to be held in Hanoi Viet Nam in
2004.
27. Ministers concurred
that economic coordinators at ministerial level should take
responsibility for proposing new approaches for a more
operational EMM 6. All Ministers undertook to provide ideas
to their economic coordinator colleagues before the end of
December 2003.
(China.org.cn
July 25, 2003)
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