The year 2022 marks the first year of the China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership. Looking back at the progress in friendly cooperation between China and ASEAN, I feel the rapid development of our bilateral relations.

Even amid the difficulties caused by the pandemic, the two sides have maintained close high-level exchanges. Chinese President Xi Jinping held in-depth strategic communication with leaders of ASEAN countries in various ways. Some ASEAN leaders attended the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Winter Games earlier this year, and Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has just concluded a successful visit to China.

The foreign ministers of quite a few ASEAN countries also visited China in the first half of this year, and last month, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited five ASEAN countries and delivered an important policy speech at the ASEAN Secretariat. In addition, the Communist Party of China has also been deepening cooperation with political parties in ASEAN countries through multilateral and bilateral exchanges.

Both sides have worked together to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic. At the critical moment of China’s anti-pandemic battle, ASEAN countries supported the Chinese people without any hesitation. When the pandemic broke out in Southeast Asia, China shared its anti-pandemic experience and provided vaccine assistance to ASEAN countries, helping them build a barrier against the virus. Our joint efforts have set a good example for global anti-pandemic cooperation.

Bilateral economic and trade cooperation has reached new heights. China and ASEAN have become each other’s largest trading partner, with the bilateral trade volume 100 times higher than that of 30 years ago and the cumulative direct investment exceeding US$310 billion.

The China-Laos railway has opened and progress has been made in a number of joint Belt and Road infrastructure projects, such as the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, the China-Thailand railway, the “Two Countries, Twin Parks” projects between China and Malaysia, and between China and Indonesia.

Security cooperation between the two sides is also progressing well. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC). With the joint effort of all parties, the DOC has been fully and effectively implemented, and consultations on a code of conduct (COC) are being actively promoted.

The maritime situation has remained generally stable. Our exchanges on military security have deepened, and cooperation in combating nontraditional security threats such as terrorism, climate change, cybersecurity, transnational crimes and disaster prevention and mitigation has yielded fruitful results.

China-ASEAN ties have entered a fast development track and are being strengthened at an accelerated pace. The two sides are moving together steadily toward the goal of building a peaceful, safe and secure, prosperous, beautiful and amicable home.

China has always followed the path of peaceful development and a win-win strategy of opening up, seeking an amicable, secure and prosperous neighborhood, and following a neighborhood policy that highlights amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness. China is willing to champion open regionalism together with ASEAN, deepen our comprehensive strategic partnership and ensure stable and everlasting friendly cooperation between China and ASEAN.

China and ASEAN have deepened our political mutual trust. We adhere to high-level strategic guidance and inject strong impetus into promoting a meaningful, substantive and mutually beneficial China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership and building a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future.

We practice open regionalism and safeguard true multilateralism. China will continue to support ASEAN centrality in regional cooperation, building the ASEAN Community, the ASEAN-centered regional cooperation architecture and enhancing regional unity and coordination. China firmly opposes any country bringing the Cold War mentality, geographical conflicts and bloc confrontation into the region.

The two sides will seek common development. China will continue to firmly pursue its open development strategy and promote regional economic integration. Both sides should make continuous efforts to boost the region’s economic recovery in the post-pandemic era, enhance the resilience of regional production and supply chains, and ensure smooth cross-border trade.

We should accelerate the launch of version 3.0 of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area, fully implement and timely promote the upgrading of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. Cooperation on scientific and technological innovation should be continuously promoted to stimulate new momentum for the region’s development.

The two sides should increase investment in the region’s digital infrastructure and digital transformation, deepen our practical cooperation in e-commerce and strengthen digital connectivity, as well as actively cooperate in developing a low-carbon, circular and green regional economy and in jointly building a cooperation platform of clean energy science and technology.

Both sides should strengthen people-to-people and cultural cooperation. The great “leap forward” development of bilateral relations cannot be achieved without the strong support of the more than 2 billion people in 11 countries. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, annual exchanges and visits between China and ASEAN had reached 60 million personnel. At present, the two sides should strengthen planning and preparation for resuming personnel exchanges as soon as the pandemic is brought under control and promote closer interaction and exchanges in culture, tourism, think tanks, media, women, sports, local affairs and other fields.

We should give full play to the China-ASEAN cooperation funds, deliberately organize key people-to-people and cultural exchange projects such as the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship, the ASEAN-China Friendship and Cooperation Short Video Contest, and the Youth Voice for ASEAN-China Cooperation Writing Competition, and further enhance mutual understanding and affinity between the people of both sides.

Standing at a new and historical starting point, the Chinese side is willing to work with ASEAN countries to uphold peace, independence, development and inclusiveness, renew its firm commitment to open regionalism, building a peaceful, safe and secure, prosperous, beautiful and amicable home together, and writing a new chapter in regional cooperation and development.

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The author is the Chinese Ambassador to ASEAN.