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ASEAN leaders launch regional economic bloc AEC

The Kuala Lumpur declaration on the establishment of the AEC was on Sunday signed by the leaders of 10-nation grouping in front of world leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. The AEC envisages a single market with a free flow of goods, capital and skilled labour across borders in the highly competitive economic region. It will integrate Southeast Asia's diverse economies, a region with 620 million people and a combined gross domestic product of $2.4 trillion. 

The ASEAN leaders also adopted the declaration on "ASEAN 2025, forging ahead together". "ASEAN is working towards a community that is politically cohesive, economically integrated and socially responsible," the declaration said. Recently, Asian Legal Business, quoting a partner in a leading Singapore law firm, said, "China is cooling down and India is heating up, We believe that rivalry and competition from China and India will drive the ASEAN member-states to push the AEC agenda." 

The ASEAN 2025 document charts the path for the AEC building over the next ten years. "It is a forward looking roadmap that articulates ASEAN goals and aspirations to realise further consolidation," the leaders said. ASEAN 2025 means a community committed to working with external partners to strengthen cooperation in combating non-traditional security challenges like 
terrorism, drug related crimes, human trafficking and maritime issues through various initiatives and projects, the declaration added. 

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