Japan, ASEAN kick off FTA talks
Japan, ASEAN kick off FTA talks
Wednesday, April 13, 2005
TOKYO - Japan and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations kicked off their first round of formal negotiations in Tokyo on Wednesday for a free trade agreement with the aim of completing the talks within two years.
On the first day of the three-day talks, Japan will hold bilateral FTA talks with each of five ASEAN countries that it has not entered into FTA negotiations with yet - Brunei, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam. On Thursday, Japan will start FTA negotiations with ASEAN as a whole, which includes the other five countries - Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. (Kyodo News)
