China’s Li Qiang vows ‘practical’ cooperation with Asean in bid to reassure region amid maritime disputes, US pressure

Chinese premier says Beijing hopes to advance talks on ‘free trade area version 3.0’ while meeting Southeast Asian leaders at business summit

The comments come amid persistent tensions over South China Sea claims and Washington’s renewed charm offensive in the region

3-MIN READ3-MIN

Chinese Premier Li Qiang (right) shakes hands with Indonesian vice-president Ma’ruf Amin at the China-Asean Expo in the southern city of Nanning. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 2:12pm, 17 Sep 2023Updated: 2:25pm, 17 Sep 2023

China will pursue “practical” cooperation with Southeast Asia, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said on Sunday, seeking to reassure regional leaders of his country’s focus amid persistent territorial disputes and a reinvigorated US charm offensive.

“When the world order and geopolitical conditions are unstable, honesty and faithfulness are especially precious,” Li said at the opening of the China-Asean Business and Investment Summit in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

He added that the most important thing for trade and economic cooperation was the trustworthiness of parties and whether the market policies and environment were “fair, stable, transparent and foreseeable”.

“China has always treated counterparts wholeheartedly and with sincerity, and has been especially wholehearted to Asean countries,” he said.

“We are willing to uphold our promises, to develop cooperation in all areas and to carry out practical moves on items of cooperation that have been agreed on.”

The premier also underscored China’s hopes to advance talks with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on a “free trade area version 3.0”, which would expand on the areas covered by the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

China and the 10 members of Asean have signed up for RCEP, as have Australia, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand.