Special envoy to the Indo-Pacific Maria Castillo Fernandez says free trade deal will make all parties less susceptible.
EU special envoy to the Indo-Pacific, Maria Castillo Fernandez said there is an urgent need to reduce vulnerabilities, especially in global supply of energy and other essentials such as food.
She recalled that the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 had forced Europe to reduce its oil imports from Russia drastically, forcing it to quickly look elsewhere to maintain its energy supply.
“Similarly, with the ongoing crisis in West Asia, making ourselves more resilient is key,” she told FMT in an exclusive interview.
Fernandez said the experience with Russia has made clear to the EU the need to improve collaboration with Asean and other Indo-Pacific partners on energy security and broader economic resilience.
“We are looking to see how we can work more closely with our Asean partners on issues like energy security,” she said, adding that the EU had already given its support for the Asean Power Grid project and expressed hope for faster implementation.
Fernandez said strengthening rules-based trade ties is also critical at a time when overlapping crises — from war to energy disruption — are testing global economic stability.
She said it is also essential to accelerate the network of FTAs. “Rules-based trade between countries and regions will strengthen the resilience of supply chains,” she said.
“(In light of that) we hope to finalise our FTA with Malaysia soon,” she added.
Crucial matters
Fernandez pointed out that economic security has become central to trade and investment discussions, with resilience now embedded in economic partnerships.
She said the high level of investments, including those from European companies, underscores how deeply integrated Malaysia already is in the global production networks, particularly in semiconductors.
The EU is also engaged in trade talks with Asean countries such as the Philippines and Thailand, while negotiations with Indonesia had recently been concluded.
Beyond trade, Fernandez said Malaysia’s geopolitical position and diplomatic track record give it an outsized role in regional resilience.
She described Malaysia’s Asean chairmanship last year as “an enormous success of diplomacy” and said that the country’s ability to connect people, businesses and cultures across Asia makes it an important node in multilateral cooperation.
Fernandez served as EU ambassador to Malaysia from 2016 to 2020. - FMT
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