KL tells ASEAN 'think twice' on trade pacts
KL tells ASEAN 'think twice' on trade pacts
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters): Malaysia on Tuesday told fellow
members of ASEAN to think twice before striking bilateral trade
agreements which could undermine the grouping.
Singapore, one of the 10 members of the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), agreed to open negotiations to
form bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) with Australia and
New Zealand on the sidelines of a Pacific Rim summit in Brunei
last week.
It said it will hold talks with the United States, India and
Mexico for similar pacts. Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said in
Brunei talks with Canada, Chile and Northeast Asian countries
like Korea could follow.
"Whenever we do something out of the context of ASEAN which
can weaken the grouping, we must think twice," Malaysian Foreign
Minister Syed Hamid Syed Albar was quoted as saying by the
official Bernama news agency.
The minister was responding to questions on bilateral FTAs
forged by Singapore at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
summit last week, Bernama said.
"As an individual nation, we are weak but as a group we are
strong," it quoted Syed Hamid as saying. "People regard us as
part of ASEAN and have ties with us, but if we break this up, it
may bring negative effects."
ASEAN groups Malaysia and Singapore with Cambodia, Brunei,
Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.
Its proposed free trade area is known as AFTA.
Thailand, Malaysia and four other founding members of ASEAN
have pledged to cut tariffs on 95 percent of their trade to five
percent from January 1, 2003, under AFTA. But Malaysia has been
given more time to lower tariffs on cars.
Some Malaysian economists reckon Singapore's bilateral trade
pacts could weaken AFTA.
"ASEAN countries will have to watch Singapore more closely for
rules of origin to ensure that the republic is not used as a
gateway for products from elsewhere to be marketed and riding on
the AFTA vehicle," said Mohd Ariff Kareem, head of the Malaysian
Institute of Economic Research.
ASEAN leaders are to meet in Singapore on Friday for a summit,
attended also by Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji, Japanese Prime
Minister Yoshiro Mori and South Korean President Kim Dae Jung.