ASEAN is one of the priorities in France ’s foreign policy, French
Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said during a discussion at the ASEAN
Secretariat head office in Jakarta on August 2.
ASEAN represents efforts to build a region of peace, stability,
cooperation and prosperity, he told the participants, who included ASEAN
Secretary General Le Luong Minh, along with ambassadors of ASEAN member
states and the diplomatic corp in Indonesia.
The French minister said ASEAN plays a decisive role in bringing stability to the region and the world at large.
He added that the bloc, overcoming every challenge, has convincingly
proved its central role in forming the East Asia regional structure and
its greater position in international forums.
Among 47
priority export markets of France, six are in Southeast Asia, which are
Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam,
he said.
The minister also appealed to ASEAN and
Asian countries in general to strengthen cooperation in issues relating
to the 21st UN Conference on Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNCFCCC) scheduled for 2015 in France.-VNA