CANBERRA, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- Australia's new Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Simon Birmingham has confirmed his commitment on Friday to negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
There was "a widely held desire" to secure Australia's role in RCEP, an agreement that would see 16 Asian nations form an economic partnership comparable to that of the European Union (EU).
"We continue to encourage all countries to work hard towards what would be one of the most economically significant trade agreements in the world covering the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members and other economic powerhouses such as China, India, Japan and South Korea," Birmingham told Fairfax Media on Friday.
The government hopes to achieve on the trade front under Prime Minister Scott Morrison, he added.
His comments came during an official visit to Indonesia where he and Morrison continued negotiations on a free-trade agreement (FTA) with one of Australia's closest neighbours.
The first step of the FTA will be allowing Australian universities to open campuses in Indonesia.
"This agreement will help forge stronger economic ties with one of our major trading partners and provide businesses and investors with more access to Indonesia's trillion-dollar economy," Birmingham said.
Prior to departing for Jakarta on Thursday, Morrison said, "We'll always believe that trade will generate positive results for our economy."
"It's how we keep the economy strong, it's how we've been a prosperous country."
