It was noted that since the signing of the ASEAN-EC Cooperation Agreement in 1980, commercial, economic and development cooperation has made significant progress. Both groups being outward-looking, GATT- consistent and supportive of the process of trade liberalization - the EC moving to a single market and the ASEAN to a free trade area - ASEAN and EC agreed to continue to accelerate joint efforts in enhancing ASEAN- EC relations.

To further promote trade and commercial cooperation, the 10th Ministerial Meeting agreed on the following measures: (a) both sides would continue to improve access to their respective markets to maintain a high rate of growth in two-way trade; (b) both sides would cooperate to create and enhance rapid information networks linking business operators in the two regions, for example, through the establishment of business information centres and networks of European Chambers of Commerce in ASEAN; (c) the EC would provide more systematic information on the Single European Market with the view to assisting ASEAN to adjust to changes and market opportunities.

ASEAN and EC have reaffirmed the importance of private sector participation in ASEAN-EC industrial and investment cooperation. The private sector from both sides have been encouraged to participate in the various ASEAN industrial programmes and in the EC Investment Partner (ECIP) scheme in order to realize more ASEAN-EC joint venture projects. The ECIP scheme has been extended since it first began in 1989. To date, 101 projects have been financed while resources for each ECIP project has been increased to one million ECU. Since the 10th AEMM, concrete steps have been undertaken by the EC to extend funding facilities of the European Investment Bank (EIB) to ASEAN. In May 1993, EIB officials met with ASEAN officials in Manila to present the Framework for EIB activities in Asia and Latin America.

At the 10th ASEAN-EC Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) in Manila on 29-30 October, 1992, both ASEAN and EC agreed to improve their relations by creating four Sub-committees to support the JCC, namely; (1) Sub- committee on Economic and Industrial Cooperation; (2) Sub-committee on Trade; (3) Sub-committee on Drugs; and (4) Sub-committee on Forests. Later, it was also proposed to establish another sub-committee, namely, the Sub-committee on Science and Technology.

ASEAN and EC also agreed to hold the 11th ASEAN- EC Meeting in Manila in January 1994 back-to-back with the ASEAN-EC SOM and the 5th Trade Meeting.

On global and other regional issues, ASEAN and EC held the view that the end of the Cold War presented unprecedented opportunities for enhanced cooperation between developed and developing nations. Both sides called for renewed international cooperation to address the multifarious concerns of developing nations such as the eradication of poverty, debt relief, access to markets, transfer of technology and environmental protection.

Determined to take advantage of the end of the Cold War and to reinforce security and stability in the Southeast Asian region, the EC Ministers, at the 10th Ministerial Meeting, welcomed the accession of Vietnam and Laos to the ASEAN Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia and looked forward to wider cooperation in the entire Southeast Asia in ensuring lasting regional peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. In addition, to emphasize the need to resolve all sovereignty and jurisdictional issues pertaining to the South China Sea by peaceful means and without resort to force, the EC Ministers also endorsed the ASEAN Declaration on the South China Sea issued in July 1992.