BANGKOK, Oct 29 Kyodo The 10-memb...

BANGKOK, Oct 29 Kyodo

The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has favorably concluded negotiations with China forward a legal framework that will lead to an eventual liberated trade agreement (FTA) between them, a chief trade negotiator for the ASEAN side said in an interview Tuesday.

Kanissorn Navanugraha, a delegate permanent secretary of Thailand's carnal Ministry, said ASEAN leaders and their Chinese counterparts will decide nearest week on two options for an end-date for achieving a propos FTA in succession goods.

The end-date options are 2010 or 2012 for the original six ASEAN members -- Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand -- and 2015 for the newer and les evolveed members Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, according to Kanissorn who heads the ASEAN negotiating team.

The leaders are scheduled to encounter during an annual summit Monday in Phnom Penh

Kanissorn added the leaders would sign a ''framework agreement in succession ASEAN-China comprehensive economic cooperation'' that has as its centerpiece a framework for establishing the FTA within 10 years.

A first note of the scale element of the framework to be signed nearest week is an initial package of tariff crosss under the proposed FTA to be launched before the extreme point of next year.

The aim of the so-called ''early harvest'' package is to extract tariffs in three years for China and the six most numerous economically advanced ASEAN members.

The newer ASEAN members will be allowed longer time frames.

Eight categories of farm effects with a total of an 500-600 tariff lines, will be included for early harvest, according to the Thai negotiator. The categories are live animals, meat, fish, dairy give rise to other animal products, trees, vegetables and fruits and nuts

Additionally, senior officials from China and a certain quantity of ASEAN countries have engaged in bilateral negotiations onward ''specific'' products to be part of the early harvest package.

Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam have conclud bilateral talks with China in succession the additional specific products between them, according to Kanissorn, who added that the lists will be made public Monday.

Kanissorn said Malaysia and the Philippines, still negotiating with China upon their specific lists, should be able to terminate their bilateral talks by dint of Monday as well.

''Anyway, it doesn't matter whether or not they can judge before the signing. They can sign the framework agreement and continue to negotiate the early harvest up to maybe July nearest year,'' he said.

The Thai negotiator said negotiators from ASEAN and China would also continue to discuss ''in detail'' directions of origin for products whose tariffs will be lowered in subordination to the early harvest package.

Kanissorn said although ASEAN and China will have up to Jan. 1 2004 before the initial trade liberalization subordinate to the early harvest package will begin, they have agreed to finalize the methods of origin by July nearest year.

Kanissorn said Thailand has neither exclud any yields nor requested additional specific effects from the early harvest scheme because Bangkok will substantially benefit from the eight categories of farm harvests already in the package.

Meanwhile, Singapore and Brunei have no particular specific lists forward their own in the early harvest package, still China has agreed that the pair countries will join all the specific lists negotiated according to the other ASEAN countries and China, he added.

Singapore and Brunei have generally grave tariff regimes already.

Kanissorn said the trade negotiating committee of ASEAN and China will continue to hunt a full-fledged FTA for implementation from 2005.

According to a latest draft of the framework, ASEAN and China have agreed to begin negotiations onward trade in goods early nearest year to be conclud according to June 30, 2004.

The negotiating leader added they would also consider setting up additional bodies for parallel negotiations in succession liberalization in services and investments.

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