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EAEU Days held at Secretariat of Association of Southeast Asian Nations
The EAEU Days at the ASEAN Secretariat started on November 20 in Jakarta (Republic of Indonesia). The event is held in honour of the fifth anniversary of signing the Memorandum of Understanding between the Eurasian Economic Commission and ASEAN in the field of economic cooperation and is aimed at raising awareness of government, business and expert circles of the ASEAN States about the Eurasian economic integration development.
The EAEU Days were opened by Sergei Glazyev, EEC Minister in charge of Integration and Macroeconomics, and Kao Kim Hourn, ASEAN Secretary General.
“The EAEU and ASEAN countries are moving to a new stage of trade and economic cooperation. This year we have reached a record level of trade turnover, which grows by 11% year-on-year. There are many factors pointing to the long-term nature of this trend," Sergei Glazyev stated. "The geo-economic landscape changes, and our integration associations become the most important development centres of the present-day world. The next five years will be a breakthrough in relations between the EAEU and ASEAN business communities. This will be facilitated by new opportunities for direct links between the business, expert and academic communities created by the EEC and the ASEAN Secretariat."
In turn, Kao Kim Hourn has noted that the EAEU Days are an opportunity to demonstrate the EAEU Member States' potential to the people of the ASEAN countries. He emphasized the great opportunities for cooperation between the ASEAN and EAEU in the fields of trade and investment, tourism, resource management, high-tech manufacturing, digital technologies and transport.
Alexei Overchuk, Chairman of the EEC Council, and Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, sent greetings to the EAEU Days participants, expressing his sincere gratitude to the ASEAN Secretariat and the EEC for implementing the initiative to host this event. He has noted that developing contacts between the EAEU and ASEAN, as well as exchange of views, that will take place during the EAEU Days, will contribute to deepening partnership relations between the two integration associations linking the economic spaces of the North and South-East of Eurasia.
Furthermore, on the opening day of the event, Sergei Glazyev had a working meeting with Kao Kim Hourn, ASEAN Secretary-General, during which they discussed cooperation between the EEC and the ASEAN Secretariat in such areas as trade, digital agenda, entrepreneurship development, promotion of economic integration, achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and others. The EEC Minister thanked ASEAN for supporting the idea of holding the EAEU Days.
The EAEU Days program includes a photo exhibition "Eurasian Economic Union 2015 – 2023: Achievements and Prospects" covering the main milestones of the Eurasian economic integration and demonstrating the Union's achievements in key areas of cooperation between the EAEU States (manufacturing industry, agriculture, energy, transport, digital agenda and others).
Besides, two round tables are planned: "The Economic Agenda of the EAEU and ASEAN: Overlapping Interests" (jointly with the ASEAN Center at MGIMO) and "Strengthening EAEU-ASEAN Ties: Role of the Business Community" (jointly with the Russia-ASEAN Business Council). The events' broadcast is available on the EEC Youtube channel.
The EEC, with the assistance of the EAEU States' diplomatic missions, organized a specialised event where guests of the EAEU Days were offered ethnic foods of the Union countries.
The EAEU Days events are attended by the EEC delegation, representatives of the EAEU States, heads and employees of the ASEAN Secretariat, representatives of the business, government and expert circles of the EAEU and ASEAN countries.
For reference
The Memorandum of Understanding between the EEC and ASEAN on economic cooperation was signed in 2018.
The EEC and ASEAN implement a joint Cooperation Program designed for the period until 2025. As part of this program, a number of joint events have been organized, the most notable of which are the seminar "Regional Economic Integration in the EAEU and ASEAN", held in 2019, and "Digital Transformation in the EAEU and ASEAN" (the first stage was held on March 1, 2023, and the second stage – in 2024). The ASEAN representatives participate in sessions organized by the EEC at major forums, such as the annual EAEU-ASEAN Business Dialogue at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, as well as at the EEC events on the impact of economic integration on achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals until 2030. The ASEAN invites the EEC representatives to participate in the Russia-ASEAN senior officials and economic ministers meetings.
