China cherishes ties with Malaysia, Indonesia
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Journalist
: ASEAN-China relationship has made big progress in the recent years. Do you see any challenges in ASEAN-China relationship? What steps will China take to promote ASEAN-China relationship? Some countries, including Indonesia, have some concern over the implementation of CAFTA. What's your view on that?Wen Jiabao: You asked a big question, that is the relationship between China and ASEAN. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of dialogue relationship between China and ASEAN. Over the past 20 years, we have moved from a dialogue relationship to good-neighborly relations and to a relationship of strategic cooperation. China and ASEAN now enjoy all-round cooperation. Take China-Indonesia relations for example. Our two countries established the strategic partnership in 2005, and later we formulated the plan of action for the implementation of the strategic partnership, bringing our bilateral relations into a new stage.
Now China-ASEAN relationship has entered a stage of forging ahead in all respects. ASEAN integration has made steady progress. The China-ASEAN FTA has been established. And our cooperation in finance, infrastructure, connectivity and other areas has deepened. Although ASEAN members are at different stages of development, I believe we can all benefit from our cooperation on the basis of mutual benefit and win-win results.
I had the privilege of attending all China-ASEAN leaders' meetings since 2003. I have witnessed the progress in ASEAN integration building and the gradual improvement of such cooperation mechanisms as 10+1, 10+3 and China-Japan-ROK. I believe all these cooperation mechanisms have reinforced each other by drawing upon each other's strengths and achieved common development. They have developed into fairly full-fledged cooperation mechanisms. I hope that China-ASEAN cooperation will continue to move along this healthy track in the right direction.
You are interested in the China-ASEAN FTA. I would like to say that much preparation was made before the FTA was officially inaugurated last year. I believe that the China-ASEAN FTA has brought benefits to both China and ASEAN countries. We have witnessed tremendous growth of trade between the two sides. For example, China-Indonesia trade expanded by nearly 40% in the first quarter of this year, and achieved basic balance.
I want to use this opportunity to address the concerns on the minds of some businesses and individuals with regard to CAFTA. The China-ASEAN free trade arrangement is of mutual benefit and brings win-win results to all parties concerned. We need to make full use of the favorable conditions, especially the preferential policies set out in the FTA. And in the course of China-ASEAN FTA development, we should constantly improve this arrangement in the light of actual circumstances. We need to accommodate the interests of small- and medium-sized enterprises, and work together to ensure that the FTA will contribute to the economic development of all sides. With regard to all these aspects, China has always pursued an open approach.
ASEAN and China have stood with each other in tiding over the difficulties of the two financial crises. When Indonesia was struck by severe tsunamis and when China was hit by a devastating earthquake in Wenchuan, we helped and supported each other through those tough times. I believe that all these fully demonstrate the strong brotherly bond between China and ASEAN and between China and Indonesia. Thank you.
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