Singapore has been the EU's largest trading partner in Southeast Asia, with a total bilateral trade in goods of over 53 billion EUR (59 billion USD) and another 51 billion EUR of trade in services. (Photo: Getty Image)Hanoi (VNA) - A trade deal between the European Union (EU) and Singapore will go intoeffect on November 21, President of the European Commission (EC) Jean-ClaudeJuncker has announced.
In a statement, Junckerhailed the deal as a building block towards a closer relationship betweenEurope and Singapore which is located in one of the most dynamic regions in theworld.
Singaporean Trade MinisterS. Iswaran was quoted by Bloomberg as saying that the deal's entry into force "isa strong signal by two like-minded partners on the need to continue upholdingopen and rules-based trade".
Singapore has been theEU's largest trading partner in Southeast Asia, with a total bilateral trade ingoods of over 53 billion EUR (59 billion USD) and another 51 billion EUR oftrade in services.
The parties havealso agreed an investment protection agreement, but this is the morecontroversial as it sets up a special court to decide business conflicts.
After a successfulbattle spearheaded by environmentalists in Europe, this aspect of the deal willneed the national ratification by the EU's 28 member states before enteringinto effect.
The deal withSingapore came after the EU suspended efforts to strike a bloc deal with the10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2009 amidwidespread disagreements.
The EU has insteadpursued deals with individual ASEAN countries and has concluded a pact withVietnam./.
VNA
