ASEAN chief makes case for deeper trade ties with India

NEW DELHI, India - Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Director-General Le Luong Minh is calling for the approval of trade deals that will deepen the economic ties between the regional bloc and India.

ASEAN and India have forged a deal on goods five years ago, but the agreements on services and investments are still awaiting approval.

“While the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement was already signed in August 2009, the agreements on trade in services and investment having been concluded and legally scrubbed are yet to be signed,” he said during a Delhi Dialogue VI session Friday here.

“The agreement should be ratified by all parties as soon as possible,” he added.

Minh said the signing of the agreements would allow ASEAN and India to realize their economic potentials.

“With a combined market of over 1.8 billion people and a GDP (gross domestic product) of $3.8-trillion as well as relative geographical proximity, there are huge potentials awaiting to be tapped in ASEAN-India trade, investment and economic cooperation,” he said.

ASEAN consists of the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam and Cambodia.

A product of more than six years of talks, the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement removes tariffs on products including textiles, electronics and chemicals. Deals that will pave way to further opening up of services and investments in these countries have yet to be ratified due to some policy differences.

Minh said an air services agreement between the 10-country bloc and India would strengthen connectivity in the region.

“ASEAN-India air connectivity could be strengthened by working towards greater liberalization of air services, both cargo and passengers. In this connection, the ASEAN-India Air Services Agreement should be concluded as soon as possible,” he said.

“Regular exchanges between the ASEAN Connectivity Coordinating Committee and India’s Inter-Ministerial Group on Connectivity would be essential to advance ASEAN connectivity and ASEAN-India connectivity.”

Trade between India and ASEAN reached $76.4-billion in 2012, higher than the $70-billion target for that year. The country aims to increase its trade volume with Southeast Asia to $100-billion in 2015 and $200-billion in 2020.

India considers its relationship with ASEAN as a cornerstone of its foreign policy and has been a full dialogue partner of the regional bloc since 1996.

Minh also highlighted the need to ensure that free trade agreement benefits the business community.

“Deeper private sector engagement is vital to enhance our economic ties,” the ASEAN chief said.

He called for greater ASEAN-India cooperation on various fields including information and communication, culture, health, science, education and agriculture.

“Periodic reviews of cooperation programs are necessary for possible adjustments to enable them to correspond to the needs of both sides in their respective new stages of development.