EU envoy touts support for ASEAN during pandemic

JAKARTA, Indonesia

The European Union has provided hundreds of millions in financial assistance to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to help countries bear the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, a top official said on Thursday.

The EU has given some €800 million ($968.2 million) in aid to ASEAN states since the start of the pandemic, according to Igor Driesmans, the bloc’s ambassador to ASEAN.

“The financial support was provided to increase hospital capacity, accelerate health facilities, fund researches, and support economic recovery,” the envoy said in an online news conference.

He said health experts from ASEAN and EU states were in contact on issues related to distribution and authorization of COVID-19 vaccines, as well as other challenges faced by the regions during the pandemic.

“The first dialogue was held in December 2020 and we will resume our discussions in the near future,” Driesmans said.

The diplomat stressed that the EU wants to help all developing countries in procuring vaccines.

He said the bloc does not have a reserve stockpile of COVID-19 vaccines and plans to distribute any excess doses to countries in need.

The current scarcity of vaccines in the world, he contended, is because production is in the first phase and licensing procedures are still ongoing.

“Once the production is increased and there is a surplus of vaccines, we will immediately distribute it to developing countries,” Driesmans said.

On the South China Sea issue, he said the EU is “very concerned” about stability in the region and wants transparency in discussions on the code of conduct for the disputed sea.

“Maritime security is our shared concern. Both ASEAN and the EU are planning to hold a conference to discuss this issue,” he added.

Driesmans reiterated the EU’s commitment to support “ASEAN centrality” in the regional structure through ASEAN-led mechanisms that are open, transparent, and inclusive.

*Writing by Maria Elisa Hospita with Anadolu Agency's Indonesian language service in Jakarta