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SINGAPORE – Leaders at the East Asia Summit (EAS) on Saturday night (November 15) underscored the need for Asian and Pacific countries to cooperate to address the coronavirus pandemic and the current economic crisis.
At the virtual meeting chaired by Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, several leaders also highlighted the need to work together to ensure peace and stability while rebuilding their economies.
“No country, however large, can face this crisis alone,” Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said.
“To mount an effective collective response, countries large and small must work together, in an enabling strategic environment and through a regional architecture that fosters peace and stability.”
Prime Minister Lee suggested three areas for EAS members to push for cooperation: promoting vaccine multilateralism, sharing technology and supporting each other in economic recovery.
The EAS brings together the 10 members of ASEAN plus Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Russia and the United States.
PM Lee noted that a vaccine that works is part of the solution to recovery, and fortunately, most of the leading Covid-19 vaccine candidates come from EAS members.
“I hope that we will all work together to achieve an equitable, consistent and affordable supply of treatments and vaccines,” he said.
Singapore is ready to contribute in this area, he added.
It is investing heavily in vaccine research and development and increasing its manufacturing capacity to meet the needs of the region.
Addressing EAS leaders, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said the UN was working to increase production of effective vaccines and therapies that “must be available and affordable for everyone, everywhere.”
In his speech, Prime Minister Lee said that many EAS members have adopted innovative technology solutions to trace contacts and improve testing, and countries can share them.
“We must learn from the experiences of others, open up software code whenever possible, and encourage interoperability when possible,” he added.
He also encouraged members to work together to mitigate the long-term global economic impact of the pandemic on their people and businesses.
“It is essential to maintain an open, inclusive and rules-based multilateral trading system,” he said.
He added that the Regional Comprehensive Economic Association, to be signed today, will stimulate business confidence and recovery through better market access, comprehensive trade facilitation measures, and expanded commitments in areas such as electronic commerce and intellectual property rights. .
The EAS has also traditionally discussed cooperation in areas such as countering terrorism, cybersecurity, and cross-border pollution, and Prime Minister Lee said he was pleased that the statements adopted at the summit showed strong political will to address those. common challenges.
“Regional stakeholders must continue to work together to maintain peace and stability in the region,” he added, citing the South China Sea, where maritime disputes must be resolved in accordance with universally recognized principles of international law.
He also welcomed the progress made in the ASEAN-China negotiations on a Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea, adding: “There is a lot of work ahead and we must maintain the momentum of the discussions so that we can conclude an effective and substantive COC “.
ASEAN leaders were joined at the EAS by Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang and Russian President Vladimir Putin, among others, but the United States was represented by National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien, and India by Minister of Defense. Foreign Affairs, S. Jaishankar.
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