BEIJING: Malaysia has backed China’s initiative to accelerate the process to undertake firm action towards realising the Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP).
The support was expressed by International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed at the 26th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation’s Ministerial Meeting here on Friday, ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
In Qingdao, China, earlier in May, the block’s trade ministers agreed that Apec would remain a non-binding, voluntary forum and provide intellectual input into the FTAAP process.
“They also agreed that FTAAP, when agreed, will be pursued outside of Apec.
The FTAAP has been envisaged to be a comprehensive free trade agreement (FTA) built on existing FTAs in the region.
“Malaysia fully supports the Beijing Roadmap for Apec’s contribution to the realisation of an FTAAP. We welcome the collective strategic study on FTAAP and are committed to cooperating in its work,” Mustapa said after the meeting.