JAKARTA - Southeast Asian leaders have reached the understanding of every bilateral agreement they may make with the United States regarding trade rates will not harm the economies of fellow members.
This agreement was conveyed by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. Anwar said there was a consensus during the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur, any deal negotiated with Washington would ensure the overall interests of the region were protected.
The ASEAN meeting was held amid global market volatility and slowing economic growth, and amid uncertainty over the trade war that has taken place since the announcement of the "Freedom Day" tariff by US President Donald Trump.
Southeast Asia is one of the hardest-hit areas by the tariff, with six countries facing tariff impositions between 32% and 49% in July if negotiations on tariff reduction fail.
"While continuing bilateral negotiations, consensus is increasing to have some kind of understanding with ASEAN that decisions should not harm other countries," Anwar said.
"So we have to protect the territory of 650 or 660 million people," he said of ASEAN.
ASEAN, an area with a combined gross domestic product of more than $3.8 trillion, is in a precarious position in relation to the United States, which is the largest market for the region's exports, the main driver of its growth.
The block, which consists of 10 countries, has released a five-year strategic plan to better integrate its economy, citing challenges that mean "going business as usual will not be enough".
Tuesday's meeting also included economic meetings of ASEAN leaders, Gulf and Chinese countries, represented by Prime Minister Li Qiang.
SEE ALSO:
One of those who were not present was the ruler of Brunei, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, who was treated at the Kuala Lumpur hospital after feeling tired, but in good health according to his office.
At a dinner on Tuesday, Chinese PM urged Gulf and ASEAN countries to remove trade barriers and expand liberalization in the face of rising protectionism and unilateralism.
"We all need to maintain a multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization as a point, and encourage the creation of a stable and orderly international market environment," he said.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
