Plying against the headwinds

China and ASEAN are writing a new chapter for their community with a shared future in these testing times

The next year marks the 30th anniversary of dialogue relations between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Looking back on the past three decades, the two sides have supported each other and made important progress in economic and social development and vital contributions to the prosperity and stability of East Asia. In the face of the outbreak of the novel coronavirus this year, the two sides have stood together during the testing time and opened up bright prospects for the China-ASEAN community with a shared future.

What China and ASEAN have done together to combat the pandemic and promote social-economic recovery sets a good example for the region and beyond. The Special China-ASEAN Ministerial-level Meeting on COVID-19 on Feb 20 was the first multilateral meeting on pandemic control cooperation. Later on, the leaders of China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and ASEAN demonstrated their resolve to fight against the pandemic together and confidence in stabilizing the regional economy via a videoconference on April 14. Meetings of health ministers, high-ranking officials and experts were then held one after another, during which China shared its experience and treatment plans and contributed suggestions that suited each country's realities on the ground.

At the most critical moment of China's fight against the virus, the governments and peoples of the ASEAN countries offered timely, valuable and selfless help and support. After China brought the domestic situation under control, China returned the favor and its government, military, companies and civil organizations gave large quantities of material assistance to the ASEAN countries. China has sent medical expert teams to five ASEAN countries-Cambodia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Laos and Malaysia-and has also assisted the Philippines and Myanmar to increase their testing capacity.

Thanks to the joint efforts of China and countries in the region, the pandemic is generally under control in ASEAN. With the aim of boosting social and economic development in post-pandemic era, China put in place fast tracks for personnel and green passages for goods with Singapore, Laos, Myanmar and Indonesia, resumed direct international flights with Vietnam and some other ASEAN countries and discussed establishing a network of fast passages in East Asia.

China and ASEAN have always respected each other, treated each other as equals, pursued good neighborliness and friendliness and engaged in mutual support. High-level interactions have become quite frequent during the pandemic, with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang engaged in extensive cloud diplomacy with the leaders of the ASEAN countries.

When addressing the South China Sea issue, China and the ASEAN countries are committed to the dual-track approach, fully leveraging bilateral dialogue mechanisms, properly handling divergences, and promoting negotiations on a Code of Conduct for the South China Sea. The two sides are also working on maritime confidence-building measures, eliminating external interference and safeguarding peace and stability in the South China Sea.

China and the ASEAN countries have strengthened communication and coordination within the frameworks of the United Nations, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, the G20 and East Asia cooperation, upheld the global governance system with the United Nations at its core, supported the World Health Organization in coordinating the global fight against the pandemic, opposed politicizing and stigmatizing the virus and promoted international fairness and justice.

Despite the global downward pressure, China-ASEAN economic and trade cooperation has witnessed growth and contributed to the recovery of the regional economy. In the first half of this year, the export and import volume between China and ASEAN reached 2.09 trillion yuan ($298 billion), representing a 5.6 percent year-on-year increase and accounting for 14.7 percent of China's total international trade. ASEAN has taken the European Union's place as China's largest trading partner, showing the huge resilience of China-ASEAN economic and trade relations.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area, the first such initiative for ASEAN as a whole. And the Upgrade Protocol of the FTA took effect last year. After the pandemic broke out, the two sides issued the China-ASEAN Economic Ministers' Joint Statement on Combating the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) and Enhancing ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement Cooperation, and they are parties to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement that is expected to be concluded by the end of the year, safeguarding the multilateral trading regime in the region. China and the ASEAN countries are also making steady progress in their cooperation under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

This year is also the year of China-ASEAN digital economy cooperation when the two sides will strengthen collaboration in digital disease control, smart cities, 5G, big data and artificial intelligence to share the dividends of the digital economy.

Enthusiasm for people-to-people and cultural exchanges has stayed strong, bringing more mutual understanding and goodwill for the peoples of China and ASEAN.

In face of the pandemic, the peoples of China and ASEAN donated money and materials, and expressed their sympathy and support for one another through videos. Such gestures have brought the hearts of the people even closer. Media, think tanks and people from different walks of life have held video conferences to enhance dialogue and communication. The China-ASEAN Young Leaders Scholarship is also witnessing smooth advancement. Not long ago, the Chinese mission to ASEAN held a successful seminar on China-ASEAN cooperation on disease control and the building of a human community with a shared future and launched a short video contest with the theme of China-ASEAN friendly cooperation.

As a Chinese saying goes, with a calm sea, it is the perfect time to hoist sail and embark on the next stage of the journey. It's my firm belief that the China-ASEAN ties, with their solid foundations and after the test of the pandemic, will unleash greater vitality for a new chapter in the China-ASEAN community with a shared future.

The author is the Chinese ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The author contributed this article to China Watch, a think tank powered by China Daily. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.