Europe and Asia also co-operate closely through the ASEM (Asia-Europe meeting) process, launched in Bangkok in 1996. This has now developed into a broad forum for in-depth consultations between European and Asian partners and has prompted a range of co-operation initiatives.
For example, in April this year the ECB will be organising a seminar on “Regional economic, financial and monetary co-operation: the European and Asian experiences”. Of course, I would also like to recall that the EU has long been in favour of China joining the World Trade Organisation, as it now has done, for which I should like to congratulate you.