KL wants ASEAN members to seek approval on trade deals

KL wants ASEAN members to seek approval on trade deals

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysia's trade minister urged ASEAN
members on Thursday to get approval from the grouping before
entering bilateral trade deals to avoid disrupting the regional
trade pact.

Rafidah Aziz said individual members of the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) were free to sign bilateral
agreements with each other or countries outside the grouping.

But these pacts should not include any negotiations on tariff
concessions which would overlap with the ASEAN Free Trade Area
(AFTA).

"When it comes to bilateral agreements, we have no right to
question but in the case of Free Trade Agreements (FTA) where you
bargain on tariff concessions... then it is going against AFTA
rules and that cannot be done," Rafidah was quoted as saying by
Bernama news agency.

"We must get ASEAN consensus."

Rafidah said whatever benefits that ASEAN countries provide to
their partner in an FTA agreement should also be offered to the
grouping.

The Jakarta-based ASEAN secretariat would be monitoring
bilateral agreements signed by any of its 10 members to ensure
there was no "backdoor entry" into the region, she added.

Malaysia has earlier criticized FTAs which neighboring
Singapore has reached or is discussing with the United States,
New Zealand and Japan.

Bernama said Thailand and the Philippines were also exploring
the FTAs with other countries.

Under AFTA, the group's six original members must cut tariffs
on imports of agreed products from countries within the group to
a maximum of five percent by January 2003.

World Trade Organization director-general designate Supachai
Panitchpakdi has supported the FTAs but urged ASEAN to be
watchful that these did not give other countries back door access
without offering reciprocal trade privileges.

Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines and
Singapore are the original six ASEAN members. Newer members Laos,
Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam have been given longer to cut
tariffs under AFTA.