Communication, cooperation key to regional stability

Editor's Note: Foreign Minister Wang Yi delivered a speech on regional cooperation and development in the Asia-Pacific via video link at a think tank forum organized by the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia on Saturday. The following are excerpts of his remarks that are translated into English from Chinese:

The accelerating changes in the world are creating both the danger of division and confrontation and opportunities for unity and cooperation. In which direction the pendulum of history swings depends on our choices. I hereby put forward four proposals as follows.

The Asia-Pacific countries should always adhere to genuine multilateralism and jointly promote the improvement of the global governance system. As an important force shaping the international landscape, emerging markets and developing countries should remain independent and take their future in their own hands. We should uphold solidarity and mutual assistance to enhance the voice and influence of the Global South in international affairs. We should uphold fairness and justice and work together to make global governance more just and equitable.

We should practice open regionalism and promote the development and revitalization of Asia. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership framework should be allowed to play a full role. Its participants should oppose decoupling, protectionism and economic coercion, and build a more smooth and integrated regional economic cycle. We should respect the centrality of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the ASEAN-led regional cooperation framework, so as to make sure the region is far away from geopolitical calculations and no longer serves as a pawn in the game between major powers.

The Asia-Pacific countries should strive to carry forward the way of good-neighborly and friendly coexistence and jointly build a community of shared future for their neighbors. We need to strengthen investment and trade, deepen the integration of production and supply chains, accelerate connectivity, and achieve win-win results through mutual achievements. We should carry forward the Asian value of harmony, and bring people in the region closer to each other.

We should pursue the concept of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security. The Ukraine crisis must not be staged in Asia, and regional security should be promoted through dialogue and cooperation. The attempt by certain forces outside the region to undermine peace in the South China Sea will not succeed. China will work with ASEAN countries to implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, and strive to reach a code of conduct at an early date.