MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd November, 2019) Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev highlighted the positive dynamics of trade with countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) ahead of the 2019 ASEAN Business and Investment Summit, also pointing to growing interest in cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).
"In just a few years, from 2009 to 2013, Russia's trade with ASEAN countries doubled reaching $17.5 billion. A temporary lull after such a leap was observed against the backdrop of complex processes in the global economy and anti-Russia sanctions. But even these negative factors did not change the long-term trend. Already in 2018 trade volume approached $20 billion," Medvedev told the Bangkok Post daily.
He added that Russia wants to maintain the positive trade dynamics as there is great potential for business cooperation with ASEAN in different areas, including the high-tech industry.
"We know about the interest of our partners in the creation of floating nuclear power plants. This is a very promising, major area, that is useful for the development of remote territories," Medvedev said.
According to the prime minister, Russia is encouraging its regional businesses, particularly in the Far East, to enter foreign markets.
"These efforts are already bearing fruit. The 5th Eastern Economic Forum, which was held in Vladivostok in September, set a new record in the number of participants - over 8.5 thousand people from 65 countries - as well as the amount of allocated investments - $52 billion - for the implementation of various projects on the economic modernization of the Asian part of Russia," Medvedev told Bangkok Post.
The Russian prime minister pointed out that joint investment projects are a promising area for boosting trade.
Medvedev also said that ASEAN's interest in cooperating with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) is growing, because EAEU has adopted a flexible approach that is appealing to many countries.
"In the EAEU nobody puts pressure on people or companies, or states. There are no ideological issues on our agenda. We do not participate in trade wars because we understand that the time of closed markets has passed and any protectionism is harmful for the development of competition," the prime minister explained.
According to Medvedev, Brunei, Cambodia and the Philippines have expressed interest in working with the EAEU and cooperation with Thailand will continue to develop.
Medvedev arrived in the Thai capital of Bangkok on Saturday to participate in the 2019 ASEAN Business and Investment Summit.
The summit encompasses 10 ASEAN member states - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam - as well as Russia, Australia, India, China, New Zealand, South Korea, Japan and the United States.
