Closer China-Asean relations

Xi: Political trust with S-E Asia grouping has seen fruitful outcomes

Beijing: China is ready to bring greater closeness to the ChinaAsean Community of Shared Destiny to make it an example within the Asian Community of Shared Destiny, President Xi Jinping said.

Xi made the pledge when sending congratulations on the 50th anniversary of Asean’s founding in a message to Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, whose country has Asean’s rotating chairmanship this year.

As a sign of the booming ties between China and the 10-country group, China has been Asean’s larg- est trade partner for eight years.

Their trade amounted to US$452.2bil (RM1.9 trililon) last year, and currently about 2,700 flights connect China and the 10 countries in every week.

Xi said that since their dialogue partnership was built in 1991, China and Asean have stayed true to cooperation and development, their political mutual trust has deepened and their pragmatic cooperation has seen fruitful outcomes.

“China-Asean ties have become one of the most vigorous and enriched dialogue partnerships of Asean,” Xi added.

He noted that Asean has played an important role in securing regional peace and stability since its founding half a century ago, and it has become a force that represents the world’s developing multipolar nature.

China expects greater development of the Asean community, which will contribute more to regional peace, stability and prosperity and better benefit the people of its member countries, Xi said.

As next year marks the 15th anniversary of China and Asean establishing their strategic partnership, Xi said China would like to take the year as an opportunity to appreciate all that has been accomplished and look at what can be done over the long run.

In Manila on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended the grand celebration of Asean’s 50th anniversary along with his counterparts from Asean and other nations.

Wang said on Monday night that with the joint efforts of China and Asean countries, the situation in the South China Sea has been stabilised, and pragmatic cooperation has unfolded. — China Daily/Asia News Network