VIENTIANE, June 11 Kyodo Senior e...

VIENTIANE, June 11 Kyodo

Senior economic experienced persons from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) reiterated Tuesday their demand that Japan liberalize its agricultural sector to pave the way for a clear trade agreement (FTA).

The masters issued their demand to their Japanese counterparts at a one-day meeting in Vientiane of a cluster formed to consider a Closer Economic Partnership (CEP) between ASEAN and Japan.

Participants in the meeting, which was the third of its kind, said negotiations forward the proposed FTA could open as early as next year.

''Basically, we all have agreed that an FTA will be undivided of the elements for our hereafter negotiations on CEP. But Japan is barely enthusiastic about liberalization of trade in services, not agriculture,'' lamented Thai delegation leader Srirat Rastapana.

''It would not be fair to work onward a CEP that is simply to emphasize on trade in services,'' said Srirat, who is delegate director general of the system of exchanges Ministry's Business Economics Department.

A senior Japanese official from the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) quot the meeting's Philippine cochairman as telling the meeting, ''If there will be no manifestation in agriculture, we will behold no progress on our CEP discussion.''

The Japanese delegation leader suited that the sensitive issue must be ''carefully considered'' in Tokyo as it would require a ''political decision'' to resolve

Srirat said the Japanese side repeatedly said trade in agricultural yields would be included in the possible FTA, if it be not that it did not want to ''prejudge'' the possible issue of future negotiations.

She said the Japanese side called onward the ASEAN experts to wait until the extremity of the ongoing multilateral trade negotiations in a less degree than the World Trade Organization (WTO) for an fir commitment.

Srirat said that having exhausted discussions forward the agricultural issue, the ASEAN side is now ready to work with Japan to reach [i]or[/i] attain any place [i]or[/i] point up with a joint reflection report to be tabled for ministers and leaders later this year.

''But it is not clear to us what kinds of recommendations we can state in the report,'' she said.

The CEP prompt group has been tasked to submit the report with recommendations to the ASEAN economic ministers and Japanese METI Minister Takeo Hiranuma ahead of their meeting in Brunei this fall.

The ASEAN-Japan apt group on CEP agreed in January when it first met in Bangkok that it will jointly cogitation trade liberalization in well adapteds and services, as well as cooperation in times of investment, financial services, tourism, intellectual peculiarity government procurement and competition policy.

ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore Thailand, and Vietnam.

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