Exchanges Flourish in Events Across Region

Wang Fengjuan

Events held in the year 2017 brought people in China and ASEAN countries closer together than ever before

On Dec. 27， 2017， the 2017 China-ASEAN International Touring Assembly （CAITA）， together with the China-ASEAN Journalists Rally， successfully concluded at the University of Indonesia in Jakarta， Indonesias capital. During their 17-day journey beginning from Dec. 11， about 40 racers and journalists from the two sides traveled nearly 10，000 kilometers from Hepu county， one of the departure ports along the ancient Maritime Silk Road in south Chinas Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region， to all 10 ASEAN member states before ending in Jakarta.

Inaugurated in 2006， the CAITA has become one of the most popular sports events in the region. In an effort to practice sports diplomacy， the event serves as a platform for promoting China-ASEAN friendship and multilateral exchanges within the region.

With the concerted efforts of both sides in 2017， non-governmental exchanges between China and ASEAN countries have achieved fruitful results in various fields， such as sports， media， culture， education and business. The events have also benefited ethnic Chinese communities in Southeast Asia. These efforts have played a unique role in promoting bilateral and multilateral diplomacy， bringing Chinese citizens and citizens of ASEAN countries even closer.

New Impetus

Designed as a journey of friendship and cooperation， the CAITA is one of the China-ASEAN Expo （CAEXPO） sideline events and also an event celebrating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of ASEAN. The rally of 2017 ran through a number of iconic ASEAN cities such as Hanoi， Vientiane， Bangkok， Yangon， Siem Reap， Kuala Lumpur， Singapore， Bandar Seri Begawan and Manila， sowing the seeds of friendship along its route.

According to Charge dAffaires of Chinas Mission to ASEAN Jiang Qin， last years CAITA was of special significance and injected new impetus to the development of China-ASEAN relations because 2017 marked the 50th anniversary of the founding of ASEAN， as well as commemorated the China-ASEAN Year of Tourism Cooperation. This flagship event would see a greater role in making people-to-people exchange a third pillar of China-ASEAN ties， as the two sides would celebrate their 15th anniversary of the establishment of strategic partnership as well as the China-ASEAN Year of Innovation in 2018， Jiang added.

Deputy secretary-general of ASEAN AKP Mochtan noted that for the first time in the CAITAs history， the event included all 10 ASEAN countries along its route， which provided huge opportunities for people from China and ASEAN to experience the diverse cultures and traditions in each respective country they passed through. He also said racers were expected to continue their efforts in boosting people-to-people contact and understanding between the two sides.

Brunei racer Lim Beng Koon participated in the rally for the first time. He said what matters was not the result， but the experience of appreciating and better understanding the other participants. He also looked forward to more cultural exchange events like this in the future.

Flourishing People-to-People Diplomacy

As part of Chinas overall diplomatic layout， people-to-people diplomacy not only facilitates cooperation in culture， trade and education， but also nurtures sincere friendship.

After years of development， China and ASEAN are about to celebrate the 15th anniversary of their strategic partnership， in which cultural and people-to-people exchanges have made profound contributions to the win-win cooperation between the two sides.

Within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative， China and ASEAN have embarked on a number of major projects and have seen an increase of investment in various fields. The China-Myanmar oil and gas pipelines have been put into operation. Launched in December 2016， the China-Laos railway is scheduled to open to traffic in 2022 and construction is now underway. Indonesias Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway， built by Chinese contractors， began construction work on the Walini tunnel in July 2017. In early August the same year， a groundbreaking ceremony of the East Coast Rail Link was held in Malaysia. Undertaken by the China Communications Construction Company， it is so far the biggest overseas infrastructure project contracted by Chinese enterprises and also one of the most eye-catching mega projects in Malaysia and even the entire region of Southeast Asia in recent years. In December， the Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima section of Sino-Thai railway project began construction， which is scheduled to be completed in 2022.

At the same time， Chinese technology firms， led by giants like Alibaba and Tencent， have begun accelerating their investments in the Southeast Asian market， helping start-up logistics and e-commerce businesses in the region to grow and expand.

The implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative in Southeast Asia not only brings tangible results and benefits to local people， but also plays an indispensable role in promoting bilateral and multilateral relations between China and ASEAN member states.

New Heights

In 2018， China and ASEAN will take the commemoration of the 15th anniversary of their strategic partnership as an opportunity to push their relations to new heights， so as to build a closer China-ASEAN community of shared future.

The two sides will also see great opportunities in people-to-people diplomacy in 2018. In the China-ASEAN Year of Innovation， the two sides will initiate the mutual promotion of Chinas innovation-driven development and ASEANs innovation-driven growth while improving and upgrading bilateral relations. The implementation of the outcomes on upgrading the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area will be accelerated. The two sides will also work hard to realize the goal of US$1 trillion in bilateral trade and US$150 billion in bilateral investment by 2020. China has been playing an active role in advancing negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership （RCEP）. Under such mechanisms as the RCEP and “10+3” cooperation， China-ASEAN ties will become even closer and their interests further interwoven， and the accelerating regional economic integration will inject more vitality into the development of this region.

With mutual political trust deepened， fruitful cooperation results achieved and cultural exchanges becoming more frequent， the China-ASEAN relationship is the most vibrant with the richest content among the relationships ASEAN has with its partners， as well as a model for the dialogue partnership between nations.

As expected by Chinese President Xi Jinping， China and ASEAN will seize the year of 2018 as an opportunity to build a more closely-knit China-ASEAN community of shared future and make it a model of a community of shared future in Asia.