ASEAN public sees China ties as positive

The majority of the general public in ASEAN member countries hold a positive view of the ASEAN-China relationship, saying it has contributed to regional peace, stability and prosperity, a recent survey suggests.

In the survey, published last month by Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia, an independent foreign policy organization, 76 percent of respondents report they are satisfied with the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership and 55 percent say they look forward to deepening cooperation between Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China.

The survey was made in anticipation of next year’s 30th anniversary of China-ASEAN dialogue relations. It was conducted from July 28 to Sept 23 among 1,000 respondents from the social elite, officials, academia, business community, general society and students from ASEAN member countries. All the respondents were over 20 years old.

Fifty-five percent of the respondents believe that China respects the centrality of ASEAN and 56 percent said China treats ASEAN as an equal partner.

Economic matters seem to be the most popular area of cooperation between ASEAN and China, with 57 percent naming trade as the area they are most satisfied with, followed by investment and tourism.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, China and ASEAN achieved a breakthrough this year, becoming each other’s largest trading partner. In the first three quarters, their bilateral trade reached $481.8 billion, accounting for one-seventh of China’s total foreign trade, and China’s direct investment in ASEAN countries reached $10.7 billion, up by 76.6 percent year-on-year, according to the Foreign Ministry.

The survey found that 85 percent of respondents are confident about the steady increase in economic cooperation.

Sixty-nine percent consider the Belt and Road Initiative a key feature of China-ASEAN cooperation, and 80 percent expect cooperation to expand under the initiative.

Seventy-nine percent say China is effectively supporting ASEAN in addressing the coronavirus. During the pandemic, China has provided ASEAN countries with a large supply of personal protective equipment, such as masks and protective clothing, as well as testing reagents. It has sent medical teams to Cambodia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Laos, and Malaysia, and helped the Philippines and Myanmar build virus testing laboratories, Chinese Ambassador to ASEAN Deng Xijun said in September.

As for the South China Sea issue, 55 percent are satisfied with the ongoing consultations on the Code of Conduct in South China Sea, and 57 percent are confident that the negotiations will eventually bring stability and cooperation in the disputed waters.

While the United States repeatedly flexes its muscles in the South China Sea, 53 percent of respondents have a faith in China’s efforts to defuse geopolitical rivalry and tensions.