British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, left, and Britain\'s Prime Minister Theresa May arrive for a meeting during the NATO summit of heads of state and government, at the NATO headquarters, in Brussels. British ex-Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has slammed Prime Minister Theresa May\'s Brexit policy, a move likely to fuel speculation that he is seeking to oust her. Johnson wrote in the Daily Telegraph on Monday Sept. 3, 2018 that May\'s so-called Chequers plan for continued ties with the European Union after Brexit will leave Britain in a weakened position.
High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy; Vice President, European Commission
Europe and Asia have a centuries-old common history. The ties between the two continents are reaching an unprecedented level. Asian markets account for over one-third of exports from the European Union. Almost half of the goods and services imported by the EU come from Asian countries.
Every year, thousands of students, academics, researchers move between the EU and Asia. The cultural exchanges between our cities are vibrant. And there is more to our mutual relationship than just economic or scientific exchange: the EU and Asian countries have a common interest in preserving a cooperative, rules-based and peaceful international system, where multilateral organizations are the natural fora for reaching common solutions.
This relationship needs to rely on effective, functioning and sustainable connectivity. In other words, this relationship relies on the physical and non-physical infrastructure through which goods, services, ideas and people can flow unhindered. While connectivity has always been a part of the EU\'s policy towards Asia, until now the EU has not used its potential in this area to the full. That is why we proposed in September a new policy framework to step up the EU action, namely an EU strategy on connectivity between Europe and Asia.
Our message is clear: the EU is ready to step up its engagement with Asian partners on an agenda for connectivity, based on mutual interests and common objectives. Connectivity is in the very DNA of the EU, as a political project based on market integration. We can offer our regulatory experience, technical expertise and funding opportunities at the service of projects that help interoperability and convergence, promote fiscally and environmentally sound growth, and strengthen our connections in a way that will be beneficial for us all.
Three ways
We can do this in three ways. First, the EU is ready to support new connections and networks between Europe and Asia. For example, extending our Trans-European Transport Network, which facilitates trade and mobility through removing technical and regulatory barriers for transport networks and modernizing infrastructure to other non-EU countries, would be a positive step.
We will also pursue a sustainable digital agenda with Asia in order to foster universal and affordable access to digital technologies and services. We will share our experience in creating regional, liberalized energy markets with a focus on market-driven transformation towards clean energy. We will also continue to promote human exchanges and mobility through programs such as Erasmus or the Marie Curie Action as a way to build connections, mutual understanding and share ideas.
Second, in the EU approach, connectivity can only be built in partnership. Many such partnerships exist already. For long, the EU and Indonesia has fostered a successful partnership in transportation connectivity. Our cooperation in aviation safety has brought forth substantial improvements that enable all Indonesian airlines to be excluded from the EU Air Safety List in June this year. Cooperation in marine transportation, specifically between private operators, has also been intensified.
In terms of citizen mobility, a very good illustration involves the exchange of students and academics. Currently, there are 12,000 Indonesian students and academics in universities across Europe. A scholarship program funded by the EU in support of intra-ASEAN mobility of students (based on the successful Erasmus program in the EU) has also been launched. Furthermore, the number of people traveling between Indonesia and the EU continues to grow (at 15-20 percent on both ways).
We will work hand-in-hand with regional organizations and mechanisms existing in Asia, such as ASEAN, to identify and support projects. A good example is the ongoing negotiation between ASEAN and EU on the Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement. Once achieved, the agreement will create new business opportunities across all flight sectors, establish new flight routes at more competitive prices and ensure balanced business conditions for companies.
We want to work on a connectivity based on shared principles: transparency, non-discriminatory market practices, a level playing field for economic operators, protection for intellectual property rights. The best way to achieve this is not to impose anyone\'s standards or rules, but to work together within international organizations on mutually acceptable ones.
European companies must have a level playing field vis-à-vis their competitors and have the same access to markets abroad as others have in the EU.
Finally, we will mobilize all our levers to back projects with adequate funding, using to the full the potential of the European Investment Bank (EIB) and of the new tools for external investment policy available under the EU budget.
According to the Asia Development Bank (ADB), Asia will require over 1.3 trillion euro (US$1.5 trillion) a year of infrastructure investment in the coming decades. The EU is ready to support Asian countries to meet such an investment challenge by leveraging public and private financing through a combination of grants, guarantees, lending and blending. Yet, investment must be fiscally viable and financially sustainable. The EU will only support projects that mobilize domestic resources, create value for local communities and are sustainable in the long term.
Together, Europe and Asia account for almost 70 percent of global population and over 60 percent of the world\'s GDP. There is space for making our ties stronger and more mutually beneficial. Sustainable connectivity, based on strong partnerships and transparent rules, is for the EU, European and Asian countries, the best way forward. (FEDERICA MOGHERINI, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy; Vice President, European Commission)
