September 20, 2024
JAKARTA – The third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was convened in Beijing from July 15 to 18. The most significant outcome of the meeting was the adoption of the resolution on further deepening comprehensive reform to advance Chinese modernization.
As President Xi Jinping pointed out, reform and opening up are an ongoing endeavor rather than a task to be completed. The resolution laid out more than 300 important reform tasks across the board and overall arrangements for both economic structural reform and reforms in other areas, which shall be completed by the time the People’s Republic of China celebrates its 80th anniversary in 2029.
The resolution sends a strong message to both domestic and international audiences that Chinese modernization has been advanced continuously through reform and opening up, and it will surely embrace broader horizons through this process.
As Chinese ambassador to ASEAN, I would emphasize that the resolution not only has a profound impact on the future of China, but also pools of vast opportunities for the development of ASEAN countries. It thus will open broader prospects for the China-ASEAN community’s shared future.
First, China’s reform will help China and ASEAN achieve common development. During the past 33 years, the two parties have joined hands to pursue modernization.
China has been ASEAN’s largest trading partner for 15 consecutive years, while ASEAN has been China’s biggest trading partner for the last four years. Two-way trade increased by 10.5 percent year-on-year (yoy) in the first half of 2024. In 2023, China’s investment in ASEAN increased by 44.6 percent and two-way investment has accumulated to over US$380 billion.
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects such as the China-Laos Railway and the Whoosh Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway have helped promote regional connectivity and economic development along the line. The successful and vibrant China-ASEAN relationship has brought tremendous tangible benefits to the 2 billion people in the region.
Looking into the future, China will leverage the strengths of its enormous market to enhance its capacity for opening up while expanding international cooperation and developing new institutions for a higher-standard open economy. This will inject more positive momentum into the development of our region and beyond.
According to an International Monetary Fund study, a 1 percent increase in China’s gross domestic product growth would result in an average of 0.3 percent increase in growth for other economies. ASEAN, as China’s closest neighbor and major partner, could benefit even more.
Currently, China and ASEAN are negotiating the upgraded Free Trade Agreement 3.0. With the new trade arrangement, more and more products from ASEAN countries are to enter the Chinese market. This will also contribute to the development and prosperity of ASEAN and the well-being of its people.
Second, China’s further reform and opening up will inject new impetus to China-ASEAN relations. The resolution outlines plans for fostering new quality productive forces, nurturing new areas for international cooperation, including next-generation information technology, artificial intelligence, aviation and aerospace, new energy, new materials, high-end equipment, biomedicine and quantum technology.
ASEAN is drafting the ASEAN Community Vision 2045 and its strategic plans, and making great efforts in developing the digital economy, green economy and blue economy, as well as other emerging industries. With more and more confluence of interests, China and ASEAN can align their strategies to explore more potential cooperation in the future.
China-ASEAN cooperation on clean energy has continued to expand in recent years. Chinese brands account for 67 percent of electric vehicles sold in ASEAN, contributing to the energy transition in our region.
As China and ASEAN forge closer economic, trade and investment relations, more local communities in ASEAN countries will enjoy bigger development opportunities. These multiple economic and social effects will further consolidate the base of China-ASEAN relations. China stands ready to explore more cutting-edge growth drivers and mutually beneficial cooperation with ASEAN countries.
Third, China’s further reform and opening up will make more contributions to regional peace, stability and prosperity. The resolution emphasizes that China remains firm in pursuing an independent foreign policy of peace and is dedicated to promoting a community with a shared future for mankind.
China stays committed to fully implementing the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, and calls for an equal and orderly multipolar world and universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization. China will continue to implement the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in a high-quality manner and promote regional economic integration. China will continue to unleash the opportunities of BRI cooperation to further enhance regional connectivity.
Chinese modernization means peaceful development. China strives for openness, inclusiveness and win-win cooperation in promoting its relations with other countries.
China will continue to firmly support ASEAN centrality and contribute to ASEAN-centered regional cooperation and work hand in hand with ASEAN countries to build a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future to realize the Asian dream of lasting peace and common modernization.