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South China Morning Post
“Let’s build a digital silk road”: Xi Jinping tries to consolidate China’s ties with Asean
Chinese President Xi Jinping has pledged to further deepen cooperation and promote a “digital silk road” with Southeast Asia as Beijing moves to cement its influence in Asia-Pacific. The commitment comes just as the new US administration says it wants to move towards the in a message recorded Friday, Xi also tried to assure Asian leaders that China has given top priority to its relations with the Association of Southern Nations. -East Asia (ASEAN), a 10-member regional bloc, and that as the only major growing economy, China will continue its openness strategy to drive global recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, a move that would benefit Asean. Get the latest insights and analysis from our Global Impact newsletter on the great stories originally from China. “China will ceaselessly expand its openness to the outside world, strengthening its domestic and international economic ties and leading the common recovery of the world through its recovery, which will benefit all countries of the world, including Asean,” he said. Xi via video link to China-Asean Expo attendees in the southwestern Chinese city of Nanning. “Looking ahead, there will be even more room for cooperation between China and Asean.” Xi’s remarks came just two days later. that US President-elect Joe Biden announced that his foreign policy agenda would see the US resume its global leadership role and strengthen its alliances in Asia Pacific. in another sign that Beijing is stepping up engagement with its neighbors, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi concluded his journey to key allies of the United States, Japan and South Korea, promising that China will join the two. nations to revive their economies affected by the pandemic. who is the first Chinese president to give a speech since the China-Asean Expo was established in 2004, he said at the summit that as the world faced instability and uncertainty due to the rise of one-sided ism and protectionism , China had made its relationship with Asean a priority. China evaluates new prospects for ties with Japan when Wang Yi meets Prime Minister Suga “China considers Asean a priority in its neighborhood diplomacy and a key area for high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative,” Xi said referring to one of his pet projects to develop trade, investment and infrastructure along the ancient Silk Roads both sea and land. “[China] supports Asean’s central position in East Asian cooperation and argues that Asean plays a greater role in building an open and inclusive regional architecture, “Xi said, adding that China would” actively consider “Asean’s need for vaccines Covid-19. Xi also said that China will continue to cooperate with ASEAN countries over the next five years on various areas, including infrastructure and public health, and “will consider positively the needs of ASEAN countries” when the vaccines will be ready. China could cut its belt and road loan to secure the future of the project. In particular, Xi said China could work with Asean countries to establish a “China-Asean digital port to promote digital connectivity and building a ‘digital silk road’. “Beijing sought closer ties. with Asean, a regional grouping of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Ma lesia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, to try to offset the pressure of the long trade war launched by US President Donald Trump in 2018., the 10-member bloc has overtaken the European Union as the largest partner China, having also overtaken the United States last year amid trade frictions between the world’s largest economies, in what Beijing has touted as a historic milestone in its economic integration with the region, China and the 10 countries of China. ‘Asean, as well as Japan, South Korea, New Zealand and Australia, have previously signed up to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the largest free trade bloc in the world. The trade pact, which would see significant tariff reductions between member states over the next decade, could further expand China’s economic influence in Asia-Pacific and counter pressure from China-U.S. Economic decoupling. On Friday, Xi welcomed signing the RCEP – which covers around 30% of the world’s population and gross domestic product – and said further measures are planned to facilitate regional travel and freight transport when pandemic conditions improve. South China Sea: The dispute that could start a military conflict Shi Yinhong, professor of international relations at the Renmin University in Beijing, said that the need for China to improve ties with Asean and its member states has become more urgent as political, security and ideological tensions had increased with advanced countries. However, persistent disputes over southern China The sea remained a major problem between Beijing and the oceanic countries of Asia, Shi said. “There are no changes in their positions on southern China. Sea. The United States has a strong influence on some oceanic countries in the Asean, although they also know that it is not realistic for a hi-tech decoupling with China,” he said. “The future of China-Asia relations will be influenced by Biden’s South China Sea policy. Wang Huiyao, director of the Center for China and Globalization, said cooperation on the digital economy has been an extension of growing economic commitment. between Asean and China. He also said that Biden’s return to multilateralism will open more channels for dialogue between China and the United States, with bilateral relations that should follow the path of “cooperative competition.” Further report by Wendy Wu More from South China Morning Post: * US and Taiwan promote alternatives to China’s Belt and Road Initiative * Asean prepares for the end of the Trump administration in China * Mar Cines and Southern: China asks ASEAN for a quick resolution of the code * ASEAN can help avoid conflict in the South China Sea amid “rivalry between superpowers”, says Filipino Defense Minister This article “Let’s build a digital silk road” : Xi Jinping Seeks To Consolidate China’s Ties With Asean First Appeared In South China Morning Post South China Morning Post Download Our Mobile App. Copyright 2020.
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