The EU-Korea FTA and its implications for the future EU-Singapore FTA. EU Centre Background Brief No. 4, June 2011

Pollet-Fort, Anne (2011) The EU-Korea FTA and its implications for the future EU-Singapore FTA. EU Centre Background Brief No. 4, June 2011. [Policy Paper]

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Abstract

Summary. In 2006, the European Union (EU) announced its intention to conclude a new generation of free trade agreements (FTAs) with strategic partners. These FTAs, primarily motivated by economic considerations, would aim at a high level of trade liberalisation. In particular, they would cover the areas which are crucial to the EU’s competitiveness, such as services liberalisation and investment promotion and protection, and include strong provisions to tackle non-tariff barriers in areas such as intellectual property rights, public procurement, regulatory barriers and unfair competition. The EU also identified key partners that would offer significant opportunities for EU companies. ASEAN, Korea and Mercosur emerged as priorities in view of their market potential and the current level of protection against EU export interests. The first FTA that EU has concluded in Asia is the EU-Korea FTA, which will provisionally enter into force on 1st July 2011. The EU considers it the most “ambitious” EU FTA and is presented as a “benchmark” for future ones. An overview of the main elements of the FTA illustrates the level of ambition of the EU in concluding its new generation of FTAs. In particular, it provides interesting insights into what a future EU-Singapore FTA may look like. After negotiations between the EU and ASEAN were put on hold, the EU decided to enter into negotiations with individual ASEAN member states, starting with Singapore in December 2009. Both partners are currently entering the last phase of negotiations and the FTA may be concluded over the next few months. The final shape of the EU-Singapore FTA would provide a reference point for a 21st century FTA and for EU’s negotiations with other ASEAN member states, laying the foundation for the future of a comprehensive EU-ASEAN economic partnership.

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