中文
On Aug. 6, ASEAN-China Week 2023 hosted a highly anticipated forum in Fuzhou, Fujian province. Titled "A Forward-looking ASEAN-China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) in the New Era," the forum attracted nearly 300 participants, including high-ranking dignitaries, government officials, think tank experts, and media representatives from both China and the ASEAN Member States (AMS), as well as diplomatic envoys from AMS in China. The attendees engaged in an in-depth exchange of views on vital aspects such as connectivity, cooperation, and creativity, which are key to the future growth of ASEAN-China collaboration across various fields.
The three-phased discussions witnessed insightful remarks and heated discussions among the panelists from the AMS, China and AMS embassies in Beijing. The panelists included Secretary Ayodhia Kalake of the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment of Indonesia; Secretary of State Om Romny of Education, Youth and Sport of Cambodia; Special Envoy Benito Techico of the Philippine President to China for Trade, Investment and Tourism; Deputy Minister Michael Tiang Ming Tee for Public Health, Housing and Local Government of Sarawak, Malaysia; Ambassador Rahmani of Brunei; Ambassador Arthayudh of Thailand; Ambassador U Tin Maung Swe of Myanmar; Ambassador FlorCruz of the Philippines; Ambassador Tan Hai Chuan of Singapore; Chargé d'Affaires ad Interim Sanmugan of the Malaysian Embassy; President Xu Bu of China Institute of International Studies (CIIS); President Wang Huiyao of the Center for China and Globalization; and Senior Fellow Ong Tee Keat of the Taihe Institute.
On connectivity, the panelists emphasized the great significance of quality connectivity between ASEAN and China for the future advancement of the ASEAN-China CSP. They underscored the achievements and progress of flagship projects, such as the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway and the China-Laos Railway. They also shared their recommendations on better synergizing the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity (MPAC) 2025 with the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative and how AMS can contribute more to improving connectivity in other important aspects besides infrastructure. This includes policy coordination, unimpeded trade, and enhanced people-to-people exchanges, especially among youth and media communities, to strengthen a trusted and enriched partnership between ASEAN and China.
On cooperation, the panelists took stock of what has been achieved by ASEAN and China in multi-faceted and multi-layered pragmatic cooperation over more than three decades, which has yielded enormous tangible benefits for the countries and peoples in the region. Amid the post-pandemic recovery of the global economy, the panelists all agreed to explore more possibilities and tap into more potential in terms of expanding domains for cooperation to reap more outcomes. They also stressed the importance of promoting agricultural development, ensuring food security, bringing RCEP fully into play, stabilizing industrial and supply chains, supporting the development of SMEs, creating more job opportunities, and stepping up efforts in growing the blue economy, to materialize steady, sound, and sustainable economic growth and social progress in the region and the world at large.
On creativity, the panelists reaffirmed the importance of innovation in achieving economic growth in an age of information and digitization. They exchanged perspectives on how ASEAN and China can adapt to the latest and ever-changing economic landscape, constantly shaped by new technologies such as artificial intelligence, cloud computing, green transformation, and quantum explorations, posing opportunities and challenges for regional countries. They emphasized the need for effective and efficient collaboration in building a robust digital ecosystem to leverage emerging technologies' power to drive economic growth. They also discussed the importance of promoting digital literacy and skills development to ensure all stakeholders benefit from the digital transformation.
