Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

At a pivotal meeting of the East Asia Summit in Bangkok on Monday night, Prime Minister Scott Morrison declared an “enormous” victory for a deal seven years in the making and one that would constitute more than 30 per cent of the world’s GDP.

“This arrangement is twice as big as the Trans-Pacific Partnership,” the Prime Minister said. The integration of the economy of the Indo ­ Pacific is incredibly important for the prosperity of the region, but also its security, of which Australia is also a beneficiary, he added. Mr. Morrison said the deal would open up greater international market access for Australian service industries in education, health, communications and transport, and allow them to invest for the first time in a range of countries, including China.

At the East Asia Summit in Bangkok, 15 Asia Pacific countries including Australia agreed to sign up to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), likely next year in Vietnam.