(VOVWORLD) -ASEAN and the EU on Sunday reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening cooperation and maintaining ASEAN centrality based on fundamental principles in each side's Indo-Pacific approach.
The ASEAN-EU Cooperation Committee released a joint statement at the end of its 30th meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Sunday.
The two sides agreed to explore potential cooperation in the four priority areas of the ASEAN Vision for the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) and the seven priority areas of the EU's Cooperation Strategy in the Indo-Pacific, in accordance with the principles of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), the ASEAN Charter, and the AOIP.
They noted the launch of the European Group's Initiative on Sustainable Connectivity and the implementation of the Green Initiative to strengthen cooperation with specific projects at regional and national levels.
The EU's expected contribution of about 10 billion Euro to the implementation of the EU's Global Gateway initiative in the ASEAN region was welcomed.
The two sides also reaffirmed the importance of and their commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Paris Agreement, the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD), and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
ASEAN and the EU reaffirmed their commitment to deepening their engagement on trade and economic issues, and their long-term goal of working towards an ASEAN-EU free trade agreement. The two sides welcomed the growing engagement of ASEAN and the EU in a variety of security and defense-related issues.