T

he United Kingdom said it would maintain and deepen its partnership with Asia despite uncertainties surrounding Brexit.

“The conversation with ASEAN member states on our post-Brexit relationship with it is well under way to ensure we maintain a close bond through a formal connection that is as broad and ambitious as possible,” British Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific Mark Field said in Jakarta on Tuesday.

The UK is scheduled to leave the European Union on March 29 next year.

Field said the UK’s approach to Asia was based on the country’s long-held recognition of Asia as a region of tremendous opportunities, let alone its vast yet young population, dynamic enterprizes as well as its diverse cultures and communities.

Introducing the UK’s “All of Asia” policy, he said the country had sometimes been accused of being too focused on the largest economies in the region to the exclusion of others, yet that was not true both in the past and now.

“The context may have changed, but we have been engaged in All of Asia ever since.”

Jakarta is Field’s first stop in his 13-day trip across Southeast Asia. During his stay in Indonesia, he met with Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and ASEAN Secretary-General Lim Jock Hoi. His other destinations include the Philippines, Brunei, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.

Speaking at a lecture organized by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, Field said the UK, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, was excited to work with Indonesia, which was recently elected to become a non-permanent member, starting from January 2019.

He expects both countries to seek as much common ground as possible, such as North Korea and climate change issues.

Illustrating his priorities as a minister, Field highlighted three: values, prosperity and security.

He emphasized that “the UK will continue to be a steadfast advocate of democracy, human rights and the rule of law”, adding that he had voiced concerns about the Xinjiang region when he visited China.

Similarly, during his previous trips, he highlighted the need for those who have perpetrated atrocities to be brought to justice in Myanmar and he encouraged both the Thai and Cambodian authorities to take steps to hold free, fair and transparent elections.

Field said the UK had always been a “global champion of free and open international trade”.

He pledged that after Brexit the UK would work quickly to establish a new economic partnership based on the final terms of the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement and seek to transition EU free trade agreements (FTAs) with Singapore, Vietnam and South Korea.

In addition, the UK will explore new opportunities, such as FTAs with Australia and New Zealand, and potential membership of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Touching on regional security issues Field said, “Our almost unbroken naval presence provides a visible demonstration of the UK’s commitment to enforcement of Security Council sanctions and to peace, security and prosperity in the region.”

— The writer is an intern with The Jakarta Post