JAKARTA, 26 May 2015 – ASEAN and the Pacific Alliance (a regional grouping comprising Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru) met in ASEAN Secretariat on 25 May to explore possible areas of cooperation that will build closer ties between the two regional organisations. Both sides exchanged views on a broad range of issues, including current developments in Southeast Asia and Latin America.
The Committee of Permanent Representatives to ASEAN (CPR) and the Ambassadors of the Pacific Alliance had a fruitful exchange of views on the structure and work process of their respective organisations. The CPR congratulated the Pacific Alliance on their remarkable achievements in terms of regional integration over the last 4 years since its establishment and noted the latter’s interest in better understanding ASEAN’s experiences in regional integration and community-building.
The two sides recognised the potential benefit of forging economic ties and agreed to explore cooperation in areas such as trade and investment, agriculture, energy, logistics, SMEs, financial services and tourism. The Meeting also agreed to further explore other areas such as education, culture, and sports.
The Meeting was co-chaired by H.E. Tan Hung Seng, Permanent Representative of Singapore to ASEAN, and H.E. Mrs. Socorro Flores Liera, Director-General for American Regional Mechanisms and Organisms of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico.
The Meeting adopted a Co-Chairs’ Statement which will be submitted to the Foreign Ministers at their Second Ministerial Meeting to be held later this year.