Trade and investment should be the key pillar and driving force for cooperation between ASEAN and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has said.

He made the remarks while addressing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh on October 20.

Prime Minister Chinh stressed the significance of this first-ever summit between the two regions, saying it marks an historical milestone.

He called on ASEAN and the GCC to facilitate economic, trade, and investment ties for mutual benefit and green and sustainable development.

The two regions should create more favorable conditions for investment funds and enterprises from GCC countries to further expand investments in ASEAN, while supporting ASEAN Member States to boost the export of goods and services to the Gulf region.

They should also give priority to together building a green, digital, circular, and sharing economy, pursuing sustainable agriculture, and expediting energy transition, he said.

Focus should be given to economic, trade, and investment ties, tourism, culture, education, and people-to-people exchanges, according to the Prime Minister.

At the Summit, leaders from ASEAN and GCC members underlined the need to focus on economic, trade, and investment cooperation, ensuring sustainable supply chains, connectivity, maritime cooperation, and energy and food security, as well as the Halal industry, science, technology and innovation, tourism, labor, energy transition, and climate change adaptation.

Two-way trade in 2022 reached $142.25 billion and investment flows totaled $523.46 million.