British foreign secretary Raab starts three-nation tour to Southeast Asia

BRITAIN’S foreign secretary Dominic Raab reached Hanoi on Monday (21) to kick start a three-nation visit to boost trade ties with Southeast Asia, post Brexit.

Today (22), the UK will officially launch accession talks with the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) nations to engage with some of the world’s biggest economies.

The CPTPP group comprises of 11 nations, including Australia, Canada and Japan that has a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of £9 trillion.

Raab will hold high-level meetings in Vietnam, Cambodia and Singapore focussing on trade, defence and security.

This is Dominic Raab’s fifth visit to Southeast Asia since assuming the office of foreign secretary.

“The UK is committed to strengthening our friendship across the Indo-Pacific,” Raab said.

“We are demonstrating this through our commitment to join CPTPP, partner with ASEAN and invest more energy, time and effort in our bilateral relations in the region,” he said ahead of the talks.

In Vietnam, Raab will address the 5th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) on the UK’s ambitions for its Indo-Pacific tilt.

He will meet Vietnamese leaders, including president Nguyen Xuan Phuc, deputy prime minister Pham Binh Minh to discuss the implementation of the UK-Vietnam Strategic Partnership Agreement.

After Vietnam, Raab will travel to Cambodia to meet foreign minister Prak Sokhonn to initiate the ‘ASEAN Dialogue Partnership’ before Cambodia takes up the chair of ASEAN.

The three-day visit will end in Singapore, where Raab will meet prime minister Lee Hsien Loong to discuss geo-political security, climate change and the international response to the Covid pandemic.

He will also address British and Singaporean business leaders from across Asia Pacific, highlighting the economic and strategic benefits of CPTPP and the UK’s wider trade and foreign policy priorities for the region.

A recent British government review of defense and foreign policy recommended that the UK “tilt” its focus toward the Indo-Pacific region in response to China's growing influence on the world stage.