3 Dec 2012
Unlocking the Gateway to Asian Trade
Dr Rafael Leal-Arcas, COFIT fellow at the WTI, was part of an esteemed panel of experts invited to give a presentation at the annual conference, “Trading Freely with Asia: Challenges and opportunities for EU FTAs with partners in East Asia”.
On 13 November, 2012, he presented his findings on “Lessons learned from concluded and ongoing FTA negotiations between the EU and East Asian countries” at the Institut français des relations internationals in Paris, France.
The European Commission laid out a challenging plan in its Global Europe strategy to conclude a new generation of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with Asia. With the global economy currently in a state of flux and delays in negotiations at the World Trade Organisation, the use of such FTAs is becoming increasingly significant. The meeting’s purpose was to examine how to best execute the Commission’s FTA strategy, drawing upon a sample of Asian partners. Government, business and independent observers helped outline various opportunities and challenges from their own perspectives.