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Beijing Ceremony Marks 25th Anniversary of ASEAN-China Relations

Secretary General Yang Xiuping（third right） at the Conference

nearly 100 officials and scholars from China and the 10 ASEAN member states attended a conference in Beijing April 11 marking the 25th anniversary of ASEAN-China relations.

The ASEAN-China Centre （ACC） and the China Institute of International Studies（CIIS） co-hosted the event， which included participants from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs， representatives from ASEAN-member embassies in Beijing，officials from the ASEAN secretariat and reporters from Chinese and ASEAN media.

The opening ceremony was moderated by Dr. Ruan Zhonze， the Vice-President of CIIS. Ambassador Su Ge， the President of CIIS， and Yang Xiuping， Secretary General of the ACC， both spoke at the event， before Dr. AKP Mochtan， the Deputy Secretary General of Community and Corporate Athairs at ASEAN， gave a keynote speech.

Su explained that the region has seen great changes since China and ASEAN first established relations. Despite these massive shiths in international politics and economics， China-ASEAN ties have not faltered-in fact， they have grown stronger， he said. Part of these improvements have been down to improvement in bilateral economic and trade cooperation. Strategic partnershipshave continued to develop smoothly and people-to-people exchanges have become more frequent. Within the past 25 years，the two sides have deepened mutual understanding and trust of one another， laying a solid foundation for future cooperation.

Su emphasized that neighbors are not chosen， but all have a responsibility to get along with one another. China and ASEAN should bear in mind the big picture of future development and sort out their differences through communication and dialogue. Su said there are three key pillars that should define future cooperation-economy， security and culture. these three areas will prove key in promoting the continuous and harmonious development of ASEANChina relations.

In his remarks， Secretary General Yang Xiuping said that the purpose of the conference was to review past experience and explore how to further deepen future ASEAN-China cooperation. Since 1991，when relations were established， political trust has grown， and multilateral cooperation has borne fruit. Strategic partnerships among China and ASEAN member states have not only promoted the development of each of ASEAN’s 10 member countries，Yang said， but also contributed to peace and prosperity in Asia as a whole.

“The world economy is experiencing a sluggish recovery， while growth and momentum of development in our region remains strong，” Yang said.

After the release of China’s 13th Five-Year Plan in March this year， China and ASEAN find themselves at a new starting point in respect to development. Members of academic community， too， will play a key role in this development as members of think tanks， sharing their insights and spotting opportunities. This can lead to practical suggestions that will improve output， Yang explained.

Mochtan’s speech was entitled:“Forging ahead together: 2025”. He pointed out that the fast growth of China’s economy has attracted much attention from all corners of the globe. ASEAN Vision 2025-a plan for regional development in the next decade-has been released， just as the combined GDP of ASEAN’s 10 states reached US$2.4 trillion， making the ASEAN Community the world’s seventh largest economy.

“ASEAN-China cooperation has achieved tangible results in political， economic， social and cultural fields，” Mochtan said. “Asia is the most populous and fastest-growing region in the world. Although there are differences between China and ASEAN countries， both sides need to see the big picture of regional development and deal with the ditherences from a strategic perspective. Distant relatives are not as close as neighbors are， and neighbors are not as close as brothers. the Chinese dream has similarities with ASEAN dreams. Both sides should move forward and prosper together.”

Following the conclusion of the opening ceremony， academics at the event held in-depth discussions in three areas-what has been learned from the past 25 years，ways to deepen economic cooperation and methods to increase cultural dialogue and understanding between societies.

ASEAN Delegation Visits ACC

on April 17， 2016， a delegation of the ASEAN Committee of Permanent Representatives（CPR） visited the ACC in Beijing， alongside Xu Bu， the Chinese Ambassador to ASEAN.

Secretary General Yang Xiuping briefed visitors on recent ACC performance in trade， investment， education， culture， tourism and media. She stated that the ACC has been working to implement 19 flagship projects approved by a joint council of Chinese and ASEAN representatives， and expressed her excitement regarding plans to organize a series of activities during the ASEAN-China Week in May， which will create fresh opportunities for ASEAN-China cooperation.

Min Lwin， Permanent Representative of Myanmar to ASEAN， spoke highly of the performance of the ACC， which has played a key part in recognizing the success of ASEAN-China exchange over the past 25 years， and will continue to play a role in 2016’s ASEAN-China Year of Educational Exchange.

“I hope the ACC will continue to make ethorts to promote ASEAN-China cooperation and deepen mutual understanding between the two sides，” Min Lwin said. “CPR will always support the ACC， and we hope to enhance communication and work together even more closely in the future. this can only serve to strengthen ASEAN-China relations.”