22nd ASEAN-EU Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) Meeting Convenes in Jakarta

05-Feb-2015

Source:  ASEAN Secretariat News

22nd ASEAN-EU Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) Meeting Convenes in Jakarta

05-Feb-2015 – The 22^nd Meeting of the ASEAN-EU Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) was held on 5 February 2015 in Jakarta.

The meeting confirmed the excellent momentum in strengthening ASEAN-EU relations, as highlighted by the successful ASEAN-EU Ministerial Meeting held in Brussels on 23 July 2014 and the informal ASEAN-EU Leaders' meeting held in Milan in October 2014.

ASEAN and the EU exchanged views on developments in their respective regions. The EU welcomed the progress achieved in ASEAN integration and Community-building and reaffirmed its support to the centrality of ASEAN in the evolving regional architecture, and the establishment of the ASEAN Community by 2015 and beyond 

ASEAN and the EU underlined the unique nature, the deepening and the intensification of their partnership with impressive progress being registered in the political, economic and socio-cultural fields and in the development of new areas of cooperation.

ASEAN and the EU exchanged views on their increasingly close trade and investment relations. They underlined the value and regularity of the Consultations between the ASEAN Economic Ministers and the EU Trade Commissioner to further strengthen trade and investments ties.  

In line with the decisions by Ministers, ASEAN and the EU have enhanced cooperation in the area of non-traditional security. ASEAN and the EU agreed to organise the 2^nd High Level Dialogue on Maritime Security Cooperation in Malaysia in the first half of 2015, with a special focus on exchanging lessons learned on how to build effective regional cooperation and capabilities.

ASEAN and the EU also discussed their increasing cooperation in the context of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). The EU and Myanmar co-chaired the ARF Inter-Sessional Support Group Meeting on Confidence Building Measures and Preventive Diplomacy on 9-10 December 2013 in Yangon, Myanmar, and in Brussels on 7-9 April 2014. A successful workshop to provide training on preventive diplomacy and mediation was held in Bandar Seri Begawan in October 2014, co-organised by Brunei Darussalam and the EU.

ASEAN and the EU welcomed the progress achieved in ASEAN-EU cooperation. Both sides were satisfied that all regional funds under the ASEAN-EU cooperation programme 2007-2013 have been committed by end of 2014 and that cooperation continues to make substantial progress. They particularly appreciated the start of new cooperation programmes in the fields of Statistics, Higher Education, Emergency and Disaster Management as well as joint agreements on new projects in the Agriculture sector and on Migration and Border Management, which will all contribute to further stimulate the ASEAN Community and Integration process.

ASEAN and the EU were also satisfied with the progress made to strengthen cooperation in the area of science, technology and research, Information and communications technology (ICT) and civil aviation, as well as the growing partnership on human rights. Both sides look forward to the second visit of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) to Brussels later in 2015.

ASEAN and the EU recalled the success of the first ASEAN-EU dialogue on Connectivity held in Brussels on 24 – 28 February 2014, the ACCC-EU High-level meeting which took place in Nay Pyi Taw on 11 September 2014 as well as the Networking Forum – Towards an ASEAN PPP Agenda which took place on 16 – 17 December 2014 in Manila.

ASEAN and the EU discussed the programming of the 2014-2020 cycle of financial support for ASEAN under the Development Cooperation Instrument (DCI). ASEAN welcomed the EU's decision to substantially increase its financing for cooperation with ASEAN from €70 million to €170 million for 2014-2020. It was confirmed that the future cooperation would focus on (i) connectivity through sustainable and inclusive economic integration and trade; (ii) climate change, environment and disaster management; and (iii) a comprehensive dialogue facility.

ASEAN welcomed the EU’s decision to significantly increase its funding for an Enhanced-Regional EU-ASEAN Dialogue Instrument (E-READI), offering new opportunities to intensify and complement cooperation, particularly in areas of strategic interest. Both sides look forward to the continuation of EU’s extensive cooperation in support of ASEAN’s regional integration and economic development. They also observed the progress made in designing new programmes on the Sustainable Use of Peat Lands and Haze Mitigation and on Biodiversity and Protected Area Management across the ASEAN region.

ASEAN welcomed the EU's continued commitment to assist in narrowing the intra-ASEAN development gap, in line with the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Work Plan II and its successor documents, as an essential element for the successful integration process of ASEAN.

In this context, the EU informed ASEAN on the significant increase of its bilateral cooperation with CLMV countries, from € 607 million (2007-2013) to € 1,705 million (2014-2020). In addition, the EU made a specific allocation for the Lower Mekong region under the Asia Regional Programme 2014-2020. The EU expressed its interest to facilitate exchange of best practices on narrowing the development gap and trans-boundary cooperation between the Danube River Commission and the Mekong River Commission, as agreed in the Plan of Action.

ASEAN and the EU agreed on a simplification of procedures and looked back to the successful agreement of the Terms of Reference and the successive launch of the Joint Project Design Teams (JPDT) during 2014. Likewise, ASEAN and the EU agreed on the Terms of Reference of the Programme Steering Committees (PSC), which will oversee the implementation and overall direction of ASEAN-EU Cooperation Programmes.

ASEAN and EU also discussed other financing possibilities for regional integration and the promotion of a Green Economy, such as the Asia Investment Facility (AIF), a new instrument to blend grants and loans in support of infrastructure projects and the SWITCH Asia programme, which will continue to promote sustainable consumption and production in the region.

Reaffirming the commitment by ASEAN and EU Ministers at the 20^th ASEAN-EU Ministerial Meeting (AEMM), the EU raised the prospects of closer cooperation within the UN on the post-2015 development agenda and the establishment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in addressing global poverty and sustainable development as well as on climate change, at a time when both sides prepare for the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) to take place in Paris in December 2015.

Recalling the decision of the 20^th AEMM on working towards upgrading the partnership into a strategic one and task the Senior Officials to develop a roadmap for this goal, both sides looked forward to further discussions on this issue.

The 22^nd Meeting of the ASEAN-EU JCC was co-chaired by His Excellency Mr. Vu Dang Dzung, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam to ASEAN, Country Coordinator for the ASEAN-EU Dialogue Relations, and by Mr. Ranieri Sabatucci, Head of the South-East Asia Division of the European External Action Service, together with Mr. Jean-Claude Boidin, Head of Unit of the European Commission Directorate General for Development Cooperation. The Meeting was opened by His Excellency Mr. Vu Dang Dzung, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam to ASEAN and His Excellency Mr. Olof Skoog, Ambassador of the EU to ASEAN and attended by members of the Committee of Permanent Representatives to ASEAN, officials from the ASEAN Secretariat and EU, as well as representatives of EU Member States.

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