China-ASEAN cooperation sets good example for high-quality development of the Belt and Road

Connectivity has been a focus of the cooperation between China and Southeast Asian countries over the past decade.

According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, China and Southeast Asian countries have jointly built 358 Belt and Road projects, of which 45 percent are related to connectivity. The Belt and Road Initiative has significantly aided Southeast Asian countries in building infrastructure and enhancing regional connectivity. The Belt and Road Infrastructure Development Index and its corresponding report released from 2017 to 2023 demonstrate that the infrastructure index of Southeast Asian countries has been consistently high for seven consecutive years. Southeast Asian countries have greater demands for a better development environment and more enabling development environment than other countries participating in the initiative.

As of Dec 24, 2023, the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway has carried over 1 million passengers since it began operating on Oct 17 of that year. By the end of 2023, the Laotian section of the China-Laos Railway transported 4.03 million passengers and over 6.37 million metric tons of cross-border goods. In 2023, the number of passengers traveling through trains on the Laotian section continued to rise, hitting a record high of 12,584 daily passengers on Dec 30, 2023.

In July 2023, the Lancang-Mekong-Sichuan Express train was inaugurated, establishing an international green channel connecting domestic and international markets, enhancing bilateral relations, and fostering cross-border tourism and industrial development along the railway. People in Vientiane have extensively commended the China-Laos Railway for its pivotal role in optimizing transportation, creating jobs, improving the living environment and enhancing mutual understanding between the Chinese and Lao people.

In addition to infrastructure cooperation, the BRI has emerged as a crucial impetus for regional economic integration. Trade between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has experienced an average annual growth rate of 8.8 percent since 2013. In 2023, trade volumes between the two sides reached 6.41 trillion yuan ($893.55 billion).China maintained its position as ASEAN's largest trading partner for 15 years, and ASEAN has been China's top trading partner for four years. The bilateral trade and economic ties between China and ASEAN gained greater stability in 2023, giving a boost to world economic growth. All 10 ASEAN countries joined the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank as founding members in 2015. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership came into effect for all ASEAN members and China on June 2,2023. The negotiations for the Version 3.0 China-ASEAN Free Trade Area have progressed steadily since November 2022, and are anticipated to be completed by 2024 as scheduled.

Since the proposal of jointly building the Green Silk Road in 2016, China and Southeast Asian countries have been promoting sustainable development, aligning their policies, and collaboratively advancing implementation. The years 2021 and 2022 were designated as the ASEAN-China Years of Sustainable Development Cooperation, culminating in the issuance of the ASEAN-China Joint Statement on Strengthening Common and Sustainable Development in November 2022. The China-Laos Railway has pioneered exemplary Green Silk Road infrastructure projects, seamlessly integrating the green development goals into project building and operation, fostering the BRI green production and supply chain, and advocating sustainable standard certification. To preserve the ecological environment along the East Coast Rail Link, constructors minimized the impact on forests and wetlands traversed by the railway and built wildlife passageways. The Chinese-invested Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville Expressway in Cambodia is constructed by utilizing cutting-edge environmentally-friendly technologies and materials to mitigate dust pollution from road construction, and equipped with multiple wildlife-exclusive channels. Sewage treatment facilities have been established near all infrastructure projects along the expressway to recycle wastewater. In the future, China and ASEAN can endeavor to promote the high-quality development of the Belt and Road in three directions.

First, the enhancement of connection and integration between the BRI and the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative proposed by China should be prioritized for mutual support. These initiatives can be aligned with ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific and the ASEAN Community Vision 2025, encompassing political security, economic development, society and culture. Both parties should intensify security cooperation, expedite consultations on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, and collaborate with countries in the region to proactively address the South China Sea issue.

Second, the two sides should focus on developing more high-quality co-development models. Over the past decade, China and Malaysia have jointly developed high-quality projects including the China-Malaysia Qinzhou Industrial Park and Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park, which have been instrumental in motivating other Southeast Asian countries to restart or accelerate their jointly-built projects. At the Third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in 2023, China announced eight steps to support high-quality BRI cooperation, introducing new initiatives and measures in fields such as artificial intelligence and digital economy. China should fully leverage its strengths in these fields.

Third, China and Southeast Asian countries should intensify supervision and management across all projects, resolve disputes in trade, taxation, intellectual property rights and environmental protection through laws and regulations, refine the legal system for dispute settlement between China and ASEAN, eradicate rent-seeking behavior, and cultivate an environment conducive to regulated and law-based cooperation.