China, ASEAN to explore elevating ties to comprehensive strategic partnership

China, ASEAN to explore elevating ties to comprehensive strategic partnership

China and member countries of ASEAN have expanded and deepened their mutual interests by properly managing differences over the past 30 years, creating the most successful example of cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region with many groundbreaking projects that demonstrate the mutual desire to maintain regional peace and stability while resolutely objecting to West’s interference and provocation, Chinese observers said after the first in-person meeting of foreign ministers between China and ASEAN since the pandemic began.

Analysts stressed that China and ASEAN members have strengthened their relations due to a natural and strong motivation and the forward momentum of cooperation and maintaining regional stability. The US’ evil intention of besieging China using ASEAN members is just a pipedream and its “knife of geopolitics” can never cut the ties between China and regional bloc.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday and Tuesday met with foreign ministers of ASEAN countries in Southwest China’s Chongqing for a Special ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Celebration of the 30th Anniversary of Dialogue Relations.

In his speech, Wang spoke highly of the cooperation between the two sides over the past 30 years, saying the two sides always give top priority to each other in foreign relations, also making suggestions for the future development of China-ASEAN relations.

The two sides may explore ways to elevate China-ASEAN relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership, demonstrating the will and determination of unity and cooperation and setting a new benchmark for China-ASEAN cooperation, Wang said.

The two sides may also explore the establishment of an expert group to strengthen cooperation in vaccine research and development, production, procurement, inoculation and supervision, and work to build a regional center for vaccine production and distribution, to make vaccines more affordable and accessible in the region, Wang said.

Xu Liping, director of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday that China-ASEAN relations are the most successful and dynamic partnership in the Asia-Pacific region and have created many multi-dimensional cooperation mechanisms.

China and ASEAN members will promote reopening borders and resuming tourism based on mutual recognition of health codes and vaccination, and these measures will be a demonstration of people-to-people exchanges in the post-COVID-19 era, Xu said.

China is willing to further elevate bilateral relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership, indicating the two sides will expand and deepen comprehensive cooperation in the next 30 years, Xu said, noting that the direction of future development lies in the digital economy, 5G, poverty alleviation, environmental protection and climate change, as well as reconstructing supply chains under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). Overtaking the EU, ASEAN jumped to become China’s top trading partner in 2020.

ASEAN countries highly value China-ASEAN cooperation. According to the Straits Times, Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said on Monday that the ministers highlighted the “very effective” cooperation between ASEAN countries and China in battling COVID-19, pointing to China’s provision of essential medical supplies and support for vaccination across the region.

Source: Khmer Times