Mr. Chairman,
Your Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Our discussions together with ASEAN's other Dialogue Partners have proved fruitful and stimulating. The far- reaching changes which have taken place in the world pose challenges for all of us; we may not be able to tackle all of them together but much can be learned from an exchange of ideas and experiences. This exchange is a continuing process and that is why the European Community attaches such great importance to these regular meetings.

Since our two meetings in Manila in July of last year - at the PMC and at the ASEAN-EC Ministerial-your region has seen continued economic growth and a measure of political stability which is remarkable in the present international context. Your relative prosperity has not led to complacency. In the economic field, the creation of the ASEAN Free Trade Area at the 4th ASEAN Summit in January 1992, here in Singapore, represents a market of some 330 million consumers.

On the political level, the cohesion of your region is also being reinforced: in July 1992, Laos and Vietnam signed the Treaty of Bali and became observers in ASEAN which is the first step towards membership in the Association. The EC closely follows the situation in Cambodia: the successful completion of the present transitional period and the recovery of its stability will also be a contributing factor to the cohesion in the region.

During the past year, the European Community for its part, has had its share of problems. On the political level, the tragedy of former Yugoslavia has continued to be our most intractable problem and a terrible reminder that our continent, for all its progress, is not yet immune from the scourge of war. But we remain hopeful and determined. The European Community will unabatedly continue its efforts in humanitarian aid while seeking every possible way to find a solution to this tragedy. In the economic field, the continued recession which plagues most of the world has hit us hard. The completion of the Maastricht ratification process will mark the beginning of the implementation of the Treaty; we see its provisions as confidence- building measures which will, we trust, be the basis for economic revival, the return of growing employment and monetary stability.


Chairman,

We are pleased that the PMC formula gives us the opportunity fora further exchange, specifically between the European Community and ASEAN. Our dialogue is now structured in such a way that we will have no less than four occasions to meet every year: the meeting of ASEAN and the Twelve Community Member States, alternately at Ministerial and Senior Officials level, the PMC, the Joint Cooperation Committee and the newly established ASEAN Regional Forum. Not to mention numerous exchanges in the margins of other fora such as the United Nations or specific world conferences, and the regular individual contacts between our respective diplomatic representatives in the course of their daily work. We are committed to maintaining this momentum and each encounter reinforces our conviction that the links between the countries of ASEAN and of the European Community, are numerous and strong.

I look forward to our discussions.