ASEAN-EU: Strengthening our partnership is a necessity

Josep Borrell Fontelles is the EU high representative/vice president. As the EU's chief diplomat he is charged with shaping and carrying out the EU's foreign, security and defense policies.

On 12 September I had the pleasure to discuss with my ASEAN counterparts how we can strengthen cooperation between the EU and ASEAN. In a world hit by the pandemic and characterized by power politics, we have a lot in common. Our joint work should ensure that we defend the rules-based international system and ensure every human being can enjoy the security and rights we sometimes take for granted.

If the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it is that the European Union and ASEAN must come together as like-minded "partners in integration," even if they are geographically distant.

While others choose to undercut multilateralism, our organizations should ensure that our trading systems, prosperity and security are governed by rules and based on international agreements, not on the idea that "might makes right." Neither ASEAN nor the EU is ready to become part of any “sphere of influence.” It is not the law of the strong that must prevail, but the strength of the law.

We know that only together we can overcome this terrible pandemic. Last May we successfully pushed for the adoption of a Resolution on the Coronavirus by the WHO Assembly, which foresees an impartial, independent and comprehensive review of lessons learned from the international health response.

Acting together as the European Union we are assisting partners around the world in tackling the virus and its socio-economic impact. In ASEAN alone, we mobilized over €800 million in this “Team Europe” effort, more than any other partner of ASEAN.

The only viable exit strategy is a safe and reliable vaccine. Also here, we choose a multilateral response: the EU is mobilizing €400 million in guarantees to support the COVAX initiative for a global supply of vaccines for citizens across the world, in poor and rich countries. We have proposed that experts from the EU and ASEAN get together to see how best we can cooperate on vaccine security.

The second priority for both sides will be to reboot our economies. As the first investor in ASEAN, the EU is committed to stepping up our economic partnership. The challenge is to promote deeper ASEAN economic integration as well as closer ties between us.

That means first to pursue our trade agenda: the trade agreements between Singapore and Vietnam have entered into force and the EU is negotiating other agreements with several of you. We should pursue these with renewed urgency.

In parallel, we have to work even more together to enhance connectivity. We will build on our numerous EU-ASEAN programs to facilitate trade and integration and build infrastructure to speed up economic recovery. The launching of the EU-supported ASEAN Customs Transit System later this year is just one other example.

The EU and its member states contribute 50% of the €1.2 billion ASEAN Green Finance Catalytic Facility. An immediate common objective should be to establish an EU-ASEAN energy dialogue to tap into the potential of sustainable connectivity and green recovery.

We look also forward to finalize our Air Transport Agreement as soon as possible. The agreement would be the first of its kind, creating the world's biggest aviation market for over one billion people

While we focus on COVID-19 and plan the recovery, we should be vigilant about the undercutting of the international rules-based order in other domains.

We cannot allow countries to unilaterally undermine international law and maritime security in the South China Sea, thereby representing a serious threat to the peaceful development of the region. Any disruption or instability affects trade flows for everyone, at a time when the pandemic has already struck all our economic systems. Around 40% of the EU’s foreign trade goes through the South China Sea.

All parties should refrain from the threat or use of force, the militarization of maritime features, and from any provocative actions. Instead, they should exercise self-restraint and resolve disputes through peaceful means, such as the dispute settlement mechanisms under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

We look forward to the conclusion of the talks on an effective, substantive and legally binding Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, which should not prejudice the interests of third parties.

Asian security is closely linked to European security. Also here, we need to intensify our cooperation. Last year, the EU signed an agreement on Vietnam’s participation in our European military and civilian missions, which are deployed from the Indian Ocean to Africa. I hope it will be the first of many with our friends in ASEAN, because our missions do not only serve European interests. They serve the interest of peace and security in some of the most troubled parts of the world.

In the European Union you will always find a trustworthy, reliable and predictable partner. We have no hidden agenda. Only a clear and public agenda: to defend the rules-based international system, and ensure all can enjoy the security and rights we sometimes take for granted.

We share a special responsibility: to uphold the global, multilateral order. At times of protectionism, US-China rivalry and global uncertainty, it is more relevant than ever.

Our partnership is no longer a luxury but a necessity.