Sánchez stresses the importance of EU-ASEAN collaboration to strengthen energy and food security

Brussels (Belgium)

During his speech, President Sánchez assured that the holding of this summit in the current geostrategic context is a political message of support for an international rules-based system. He also reiterated that joint work between the two regions could result in important advances in the response to challenges such as climate change and energy and food instability.

With regard to climate change, President Sánchez stated that a leap in climate ambition is needed, insisting that the results of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27) were insufficient. He also reminded attendees that without international collaboration, the transition to net zero global emissions could be delayed by decades, while highlighting two advances achieved within the framework of COP 27. First, the fund for loss and damage, which he defined as the opening of a new chapter in international solidarity; and second, the call for reform of the international financial architecture.

Regarding energy and food instability, the President of the Government stressed the need for the two regions to tackle this challenge jointly. Sánchez addressed Russia's aggression against Ukraine, framing the negative effects it has had on the global economy. In this regard, he underlined the EU deployment to guarantee energy security, highlighting the importance of like-minded partners, such as ASEAN, to reinforce this guarantee.

The President of the Government then referred to food security, reiterating that the world system of production, distribution and consumption is currently in crisis due to factors such as the pandemic, climate change and Russian aggression against Ukraine. To mitigate the effects of this crisis, President Sánchez has argued for both short- and long-term measures to be taken.

With the aim of protecting the global food system in the long term, President Sánchez underlined the importance of sustainability and resilience, for which he stated that it will be necessary to improve food self-sufficiency at the global level and to ensure the proper functioning of global supply chains.

A Joint Declaration has been approved during this EU-ASEAN Summit, at which common values and objectives and cooperation between the two organisations in the Indo-Pacific and in areas such as connectivity, the green transition, energy transition and digital transition have been highlighted. This cooperation is also reflected in the EU-ASEAN Action Plan 2023- 2027, which was endorsed during this summit. In this regard, the plan contemplates collaboration in the aforementioned areas, as well as in matters such as sustainable trade, the promotion of decent work, the prevention of emergencies, reinforced cooperation in security and the recovery from COVID-19.

Family photo at the start of the Summit of the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) | Pool Moncloa/Fernando Calvo y Pool UE

Bilateral meetings with the Prime Minister of Vietnam and the President of the Philippines

In the margins of this summit, the President of the Government has held bilateral meetings with the Prime Minister of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Pam Minh Chính, and the President of the Republic of the Philippines, Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.

The bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam coincided with the 45th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries and the 25th anniversary of the opening of the Spanish embassy in Hanoi. Pedro Sánchez stressed to Pam Minh Chính Spain's interest in expanding cooperation with Vietnam, a market with great opportunities for Spanish companies in areas such as renewable energy, digitalisation, security and defence, infrastructure and tourism.

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, and the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chính, during their meeting within the framework of the EU-ASEAN Summit | Pool Moncloa/Fernando Calvo y Pool UE

In his meeting with the President of the Republic of the Philippines, President Sánchez highlighted the role of development cooperation. The Philippines is the only Asian country included as a priority in the Spanish Cooperation Master Plan. Both governments are committed to strengthening their diplomatic, economic and trade relations and their tourism sector links. President Sánchez also highlighted the efforts the two governments are dedicating to priorities such as recovery from the pandemic, the green economy and digitalisation, and food security.

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, and the President of the Republic of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos y Bermúdez, during their meeting within the framework of the EU-ASEAN Summit | Pool Moncloa/Fernando Calvo y Pool UE

Non official translation