Updated at 3:10pm on 27 October 2009 - Over the weekend, Mr Key attended the East Asia Summit in Thailand where tentative steps were taken to set up a European Union-style economic and political grouping in the region.
Such a grouping would constitute the largest free-trade area in the world. Mr Key says it would expand the free-trade agreement covering the 10 ASEAN states and Australia and New Zealand to - possibly - China, South Korea, Japan and India, all of which were represented at the summit.
Later on Tuesday, Mr Key was due to fly to Japan for a state visit.
