Good， Better， Best

By Song Qingrun

This year marks the 15th anniversary of the establishment of China-ASEAN strategic partnership as well as the beginning of the second 50 years of ASEAN. Among ASEANs relations with its dialogue partners， China-ASEAN ties are considered the most significant and most dynamic.

Recently， Chinese Premier Li Keqiangs attendance at ASEAN meetings in Singapore laid a new cornerstone for future development of China-ASEAN relations. As Chinese Ambassador to ASEAN Huang Xilian has noted， the adoption of the China-ASEAN Strategic Partnership Vision 2030 made China the first dialogue partner to draw up a medium and long-term vision plan with ASEAN.

Growing into Maturity

Over the past 15 years， China-ASEAN relations have evolved from a phase of high-speed growth to a stage of maturity featuring upgraded quality. Bilateral trade has continuously expanded in recent years. In 2017， trade volume between China and ASEAN countries hit US$514.8 billion， a year-on-year increase of 13.8 percent. The figure was 6.6 times more than it was in 2003 when the strategic partnership agreement was first signed.

Since 1991 when China started its dialogue with ASEAN， the two sides have increasingly enhanced mutual political trust， deepened pragmatic cooperation and consolidated people-to-people exchanges.

In terms of political diplomacy， in 2003， China became the first major country to join the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia and establish a strategic partnership with ASEAN. In October 2013， during his visit to Indonesia， Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed that China is willing to strengthen maritime cooperation and proposed the strategic plan to build the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road with ASEAN countries. China-ASEAN ties have evolved from a “good-neighborly partnership of mutual trust orientated toward the 21st Century” to a strategic partnership， which will ultimately lead to a community with a shared future.

In terms of economic cooperation， China has been ASEANs biggest trading partner for nine straight years， and ASEAN has been Chinas third largest trading partner for seven consecutive years. In 2010， the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area was established， making China the first major country to sign a free trade agreement with ASEAN. Bilateral trade volume is expected to surpass US$550 billion this year. Today， two-way investment between China and ASEAN has reached a new high of more than US$220 billion. Sectors in which Chinese enterprises have invested in ASEAN countries have expanded from manufacturing， mining， wholesales and retail to infrastructure such as power， water supply and telecommunication as well as commercial services. So far， China has set up more than 4，000 directly invested enterprises in ASEAN countries which have hired over 300，000 local workers and significantly boosted local economic and social development.

In terms of people-to-people communication， the two sides see more than 30 million combined mutual visits annually. In summer and autumn， over 2，700 flights shuttle between China and ASEAN countries each week. The number of overseas students from both sides has exceeded 200，000. More than 30 China-ASEAN education and training centers， six Chinese Cultural Centers， 33 Confucian Institutes and 35 Confucian Classes have been set up one after another. Furthermore， activities such as the China-ASEAN Cultural Exchange Year and China-ASEAN Tourism Cooperation Year have helped consolidate the foundation for pragmatic cooperation between China and ASEAN in areas like science， technology， culture， ocean， education and tourism.

The two sides have accomplished fruitful cooperation achievements under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. ASEAN is a priority direction and important participant in the implementation of the initiative. China has signed memoranda of understanding on intergovernmental cooperation with ASEAN countries such as Singapore， Myanmar and Malaysia and formulated intergovernmental bilateral cooperation plans with Laos and Cambodia to promote mutually beneficial economic cooperation in fields like infrastructure construction and economic and trade cooperation zones.

New Blueprints for Future Cooperation

The China-ASEAN partnership has welcomed continuous improvements. The two sides have created many “firsts” in bilateral cooperation， becoming a role model for regional collaboration. In these new circumstances， the 2018 China-ASEAN （10+1） leaders meeting drew new blueprints for future development of bilateral ties.

First， China-ASEAN Strategic Partnership Vision 2030， adopted at the meeting， laid solid groundwork for the development of bilateral relations， accelerating the comprehensive development of bilateral strategic partnership. ASEAN leaders expressed willingness to align their own respective development strategies with the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative， accelerate construction of an East Asian Community， promote regional economic integration and consistently expand cooperation in realms of infrastructure connectivity， innovation， smart cities， e-commerce， the digital economy， oceans and disaster prevention and relief.

Second， great focus has been placed on maintaining lasting peace and stability in the South China Sea region. Chinese and ASEAN leaders have reached consensus on maintaining peace in the South China Sea， promoting joint exploration of resources in the South China Sea and protecting the environment in the waters. Involved parties are working to complete negotiations on the Code of Conduct （COC） in the South China Sea as quickly as possible to ensure peace and stability in the region. Premier Li Keqiang said at the meeting that China is willing to work together with ASEAN countries to fully and effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea and strive to complete COC negotiations on the basis of consultation and consensus within three years to promote regional peace and development. ASEAN leaders also expressed hope to accomplish COC negotiations as soon as possible， properly control disputes， expand pragmatic maritime cooperation， and enhance peace and stability in the South China Sea region.

Third， the two sides agreed to jointly accelerate regional economic integration and safeguard the multilateral trade system. Currently， the United States is resorting to protectionism and unilateralism， which has resulted in trade fractions with China， several ASEAN countries， Japan and India as well as the European Union （EU）. The Doha Round negotiations of the World Trade Organization （WTO） have stumbled into a dilemma. Against the backdrop of sluggish global economic growth， Chinese and ASEAN leaders agreed at the meeting to go forward with negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership （RCEP）， a multilateral free trade agreement based on WTO rules， and strive to complete relevant negotiations by 2019 with an eye on accelerating regional integration and economic development. The RCEP involves 16 countries including the 10 ASEAN countries as well as China， Japan， South Korea， Japan， Australia and Singapore， which together account for half of the global population and nearly one-third of the worlds total trade volume. The group has a combined GDP greater than the United States or the EU. Therefore， this multilateral free trade agreement will play a significant role in global economic and trade layout.