At the business dialogue between EAEC and ASEAN on June 15, Russian officials said that ASEAN and its member countries have a significant position in Russia's pivot strategy to the East.
On June 15, at the 26th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum ( SPIEF ) in the Northern Capital of Russia, a business dialogue session between the Eurasian Economic Community (EAEC) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) took place.
2023 marks the fifth anniversary of the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Eurasian Economic Commission and ASEAN on economic cooperation, as well as the fifth anniversary of the Russia-ASEAN Strategic Partnership.
This EAEC-ASEAN Dialogue aims to create further impetus to enhance and diversify cooperation in all areas of the economic and trade agenda, including the circular economy, energy efficiency, industry, food security, logistics, digital technology and tourism.
The dialogue was attended by Mr. Sergey Glazyev, member of the Council (Minister) on Integration and Macroeconomics, Eurasian Economic Commission, Mr. Vladimir Ilyichev, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, Mr. Evgeny Zagainov, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to ASEAN (attending online); Mr. Satwinder Singh, Deputy Secretary General of ASEAN, Mr. Kang Zo, Minister of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations of Myanmar. Representatives of the Vietnam Trade Office in the Russian Federation as well as the Vietnam Business Association in the Russian Federation also attended.
At the dialogue session, speakers affirmed the great potential for economic cooperation between EAEC and ASEAN.
Mr. Glazyev said that for the EAEC, ASEAN is the most important partner in terms of the system of agreements. However, the low bilateral trade turnover shows that there is still a lot of potential and development opportunities between the two blocs, and it is necessary to transform this potential into practical results.
Russia’s pivot to the East and South has had little impact on ASEAN member states. Mr. Glazyev said that one of the current limitations affecting trade between the two blocs is the issue of payments.
To solve this problem, he proposed paying in local currencies, or by issuing a gold-backed cryptocurrency. However, Mr. Glazyev said the most important thing is for businesses to increase information and understanding of each other's fields.
For his part, ASEAN Deputy Secretary General Satwinder Singh affirmed that this discussion session is an important foundation for the two sides to promote enhanced cooperation in many fields. Mr. Singh outlined three directions for enhancing cooperation between the two blocs.
The first is energy security, as ASEAN will become a net importer of gas and coal by 2025. ASEAN can also cooperate with the EAEC in the field of renewable energy technology to make efficient use of energy resources.
The second area of cooperation is digital technology, as it can help boost the GDP of member countries. Mr. Singh also proposed implementing digital trade between the two blocs to move towards a trade that does not require “paper documents.”
The third area of cooperation is on agricultural products and food. Cooperation between the two blocs in this area, as well as processing and preservation technologies for agricultural products and food, can help ensure food security in the world.
For his part, Russian Deputy Minister of Economic Development Evgeny Zagainov said that ASEAN and its member countries have a significant position in Russia's pivot strategy to the East.
Mr. Zagainov said that over the past year he has participated in large Russian delegations to Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Myanmar to promote trade.
He affirmed that ASEAN is an important market for Russia due to its high economic growth rate, large population, large and attractive consumer market. Mr. Zagainov also paid attention to the tourism sector, which also has a lot of potential for people of both blocs./.
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