DPA
Singapore - Current political conditions in Myanmar make a free-trade deal between the United States and the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) impossible in the near term, US Trade Representative Susan Schwab said.
The relationship 'can't be business as usual,' she said as ASEAN readied for Tuesday's signing of a landmark charter giving the 40-year-old regional grouping legal status and committing the members to pursuing human rights, democracy and a blueprint for economic integration by 2015.
ASEAN leaders recognize that the bloc's reputation and credibility have been undermined by the situation in military-ruled Myanmar, where troops fired on peaceful protesters in September, killing at least 15.
Schwab, who is on a two-day visit to Singapore, met Monday with economic ministers to discuss progress made under the US-ASEAN Trade and Investment Framework Arrangement, signed a year ago.
'The issue of Burma did come up, and I expressed our concern,' she told reporters. 'ASEAN has special responsibility when it comes to the situation in Burma.'
Despite the US Senate's unanimous vote Friday, urging ASEAN to suspend Myanmar until the regime shows respect for human rights, ASEAN is dealing with the issue within the 'family.'
ASEAN leaders have called off a planned summit briefing by UN Special envoy Ibrahim Gambari, scheduled for Wednesday, after Myanmar objected.
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, in the city-state's capacity as ASEAN chairman, said Myanmar made it clear that it prefers to deal directly with the United Nations, and ASEAN leaders respect its wishes.
Singapore had invited Gambari to brief ASEAN leaders and their counterparts from China, India, South Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.
The US has a free-trade agreement with Singapore. It also has trade and investment framework arrangements (TIFA) with Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Malaysia.
Ten-member ASEAN signed a TIFA deal in August 2006, regarded as a precursor to liberalizing trade.
'The fact that we have a TIFA with ASEAN means we have the potential for creating the building blocks down the road,' Schwab said.
ASEAN includes Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar.
The relationship 'can't be business as usual,' she said as ASEAN readied for Tuesday's signing of a landmark charter giving the 40-year-old regional grouping legal status and committing the members to pursuing human rights, democracy and a blueprint for economic integration by 2015.
ASEAN leaders recognize that the bloc's reputation and credibility have been undermined by the situation in military-ruled Myanmar, where troops fired on peaceful protesters in September, killing at least 15.
Schwab, who is on a two-day visit to Singapore, met Monday with economic ministers to discuss progress made under the US-ASEAN Trade and Investment Framework Arrangement, signed a year ago.
'The issue of Burma did come up, and I expressed our concern,' she told reporters. 'ASEAN has special responsibility when it comes to the situation in Burma.'
Despite the US Senate's unanimous vote Friday, urging ASEAN to suspend Myanmar until the regime shows respect for human rights, ASEAN is dealing with the issue within the 'family.'
ASEAN leaders have called off a planned summit briefing by UN Special envoy Ibrahim Gambari, scheduled for Wednesday, after Myanmar objected.
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, in the city-state's capacity as ASEAN chairman, said Myanmar made it clear that it prefers to deal directly with the United Nations, and ASEAN leaders respect its wishes.
Singapore had invited Gambari to brief ASEAN leaders and their counterparts from China, India, South Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.
The US has a free-trade agreement with Singapore. It also has trade and investment framework arrangements (TIFA) with Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Malaysia.
Ten-member ASEAN signed a TIFA deal in August 2006, regarded as a precursor to liberalizing trade.
'The fact that we have a TIFA with ASEAN means we have the potential for creating the building blocks down the road,' Schwab said.
ASEAN includes Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar.
4 comments:
ASEAN must not sell any of its members to the US not matter what. This will not do ASEAN any good but jeopardized the future of the association and weaken Asia as a whole. Just ignore the US demand, and focus on boosting trade with China, India, and west-Asia instead.
Culture lag will always be a culture lag or culture behind. How far can ASEAN go with China or India and West Asia? When India & China still have to look up to or to do trade with The West or Europe Japan and The Unites States?
To do that is just to let China & India be as Boss when they too cann't really be their own boss, yet and put our self beneath their feet. All because we are ignorance to the real suffering of other human like Burma. Think the whole world is better than think half of the world.
There is such great misunderstanding and great miscommnunication here and it's a shame.
Not proud to be an ignorance Nation,
CAMBODIA
Until Burma improving its killings, US SHOULD reduce its free-trade agreement with Singapore and all trade and investment framework arrangements (TIFA) with Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Malaysia. Burma will be the next Pol Pot regime if not enforced. That what Asean countries did between 1975-1978. They ignored Cambodia's internal affair just like they are doing now with Burma.
Well, if the US reduced trade with ASEAN, I hope you'll get big pay raised because US made things aint gonna be cheap for you.
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