Kuala Lumpur, April 12 (Xinhua) — At the China ASEAN Media Think Tank Forum held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on the 11th, Xinhua News Agency’s National High end Think Tank released a think tank report titled “RCEP and Maritime Silk Road Vision: New Space for China ASEAN Cooperation”, which received widespread attention and positive evaluations from attending guests and experts and scholars at home and abroad.
“The report deeply explains the synergy between the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) and the joint construction of the the Belt and Road between China and ASEAN, and this synergy is injecting strong momentum into China ASEAN cooperation.” Chen Zhong, Deputy General Manager of China Communications Construction Group Co., Ltd., highly praised the report for comprehensively reviewing the fruitful cooperation achievements between China and ASEAN with vivid cases and detailed data.
From the ancient Silk Road where ships continued to sail and commerce and envoys communicated, to today’s comprehensive strengthening of land sea linkage and synergy between RCEP and the co construction of the Maritime Silk Road, in recent years, China ASEAN has made positive progress in building the “Five Great Homes” of peace, tranquility, prosperity, beauty, and friendship, and the development momentum of the comprehensive strategic partnership is strong. Meng Qingguo, Executive Dean of the National Institute of Governance at Tsinghua University, believes that China and ASEAN have helped each other, benefited from each other and inclusiveness, and have written a brilliant chapter of neighborly friendship and common development with practical actions. Malaysia China Friendship Association President Majid believes that ‘China has become the most dynamic party among ASEAN dialogue partners’.
“China ASEAN needs to establish a closer cooperation mechanism, so that the exchange of experience in governance and administration between the two countries will be closer, economic and trade exchanges will be more active, and industrial development will be more adequate.” Willen Pachaumpadi, director of Thailand China the Belt and Road Research Center, believes that the think tank report not only combs the past experience and achievements, but also reflects on the future of China ASEAN cooperation under the vision of RCEP and the Maritime Silk Road. While making a macro strategic outlook, it proposes specific paths such as “small and beautiful” projects, transportation channels, and rule docking, highlighting the theme of “regional integration”, “connectivity” and “win-win development”, which fits the current trend of regional cooperation.
Only when the roots are strong can the trees thrive. “said Nezhandari, director of the Cambodian 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Research Center, using this ancient Cambodian proverb to emphasize the importance of focusing on youth development and deepening educational cooperation in building a community with a shared future between China and Cambodia. He said that under the promotion of the joint construction of the “the Belt and Road”, not only goods, but also knowledge and skills are circulating among countries. Among them, education can be used as a “fundamental force” to enable Cambodia to empower youth development, and further consolidate the foundation of Cambodia China partnership that transcends politics and time.
The release of the think tank report has sparked a heated discussion among Chinese and foreign guests on how to effectively leverage the role of media and think tanks in cooperation between China and ASEAN countries. The healthy development of China ASEAN relations is inseparable from the media and think tanks, “said Ye Xingyi, Dean of the China ASEAN Public Policy Research Institute at Guangxi University for Nationalities.” University think tanks look forward to deep cooperation with the media and think tanks to contribute wisdom and strength to promoting the construction of a China ASEAN community with a shared future. “Wei Zhenyu, Director of the Indonesia China Partnership Research Center, proposed that” civilization is not static monuments, but vivid dialogues. “Wu Wei, Dean of the founding institute of Nanyang Public Administration in Singapore, suggested that the media and think tanks can fully play their roles, explain the importance of RCEP in promoting regional economic and trade prosperity, and showcase the fruitful achievements of the Maritime Silk Road.
Standing at a new historical starting point, cooperation between China and ASEAN is not only an engine for regional prosperity, but also a hope for global development. Especially in the context of the strong impact of globalization, the report’s thoughts and suggestions on building a closer China ASEAN community with a shared future have been recognized by the attending guests. Ong Shijie, President of Malaysia’s Asia Pacific “the Belt and Road” Joint Policy Committee, said that with the vision of the Maritime Silk Road, RCEP will accelerate the regional economic integration of China ASEAN, make it continue to be a distinctive banner of defending free trade and multilateral cooperation in the Asia Pacific region, and will also expand new space and create new opportunities for China ASEAN friendship and cooperation. I hope and firmly believe that by deepening ASEAN China cooperation, we can cultivate a sense of mission and take joint actions to build a better future, such as eradicating poverty, protecting and ensuring peace and prosperity in the global South and the entire planet, “said Didadin, Director of the Media Development Department of Myanmar’s Ministry of Propaganda