Depth | Wang Yi's Southeast Asian Tour: Promoting Cooperation, Talking about the South China Sea, Pointing to the United States... South China Sea | Southeast Asian Tour | Wang Yi

On August 13th, Wang Yi, a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, concluded his four-day trip to three Southeast Asian countries.

During the visit, Wang Yi held meetings with political leaders from Singapore, Malaysia, and Cambodia, exchanging extensive views on bilateral relations, regional and international situations, and other issues.

Wang Yi's visit is another high-level interaction between China and ASEAN countries since the beginning of this year, and also a significant milestone for China's efforts in neighboring diplomacy.

Falling a heavy stroke

From the information released by China, Singapore, Malaysia, and Cambodia, it can be seen that this visit has a large amount of information and many highlights.

The first highlight is that China and the three countries are advancing bilateral relations around their respective keywords.

In the first stop in Singapore, "implementation" became the keyword.

Both sides emphasized the need to implement the new positioning of China Singapore relations set by the leaders of the two countries during their March meeting - to establish a comprehensive and high-quality forward-looking partnership.

Singapore's Foreign Minister Vivian said that according to the strategic guidance of the leaders of the two countries, he had a good discussion with Wang Yi on how to promote cooperation.

In the second stop in Malaysia, the keyword is "strong".

According to Malaysian media reports, Prime Minister Anwar praised Wang Yi's visit as "significant" and stated that Malaysia will include establishing a strong comprehensive strategic partnership with China in its main national agenda.

Wang Yi expressed that China is willing to work with Malaysia to maintain the healthy and strong development momentum of bilateral relations, and promote the deepening and implementation of the construction of a community with a shared future between China and Malaysia.

In the final stop in Cambodia, the keyword is "support".

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said that sending a congratulatory message and sending a high-level Chinese delegation to Cambodia immediately after the Cambodian election fully reflects China's firm support for Cambodia and the unwavering friendship between Cambodia and China.

Wang Yi stated that China will continue to stand with Cambodia, firmly support Cambodia in pursuing a development path that is in line with its national conditions, firmly support Cambodia in safeguarding national interests and national dignity, and firmly support Cambodia in playing a greater role on the international and regional stage.

"Wang Yi's visit to Cambodia coincides with a significant moment in the transition of the Cambodian government, reflecting China's support for the new Cambodian government and the continued strengthening of cooperation with Cambodia," said Zhou Fangyin, Vice President of Guangdong Institute of International Strategy.

Wang Yi's visit to the three Southeast Asian countries this time also injects new impetus into China ASEAN relations.

Jin Ping, Director of the Institute of International Relations at the Royal Cambodian Academy of Sciences, told the Phnom Penh Post that the visit of China's highest diplomat reflects China's high importance to ASEAN and also indicates that the level of China ASEAN relations will further improve in 2023.

Liu Qing, Vice President of the China Institute of International Studies, pointed out that this year has been extraordinary for China and ASEAN.Southeast Asia is one of the first places to propose "a community with a shared future for mankind" and "the the Belt and Road". It has always been in the forefront of implementing the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind, and is an important partner of China in jointly building the "the Belt and Road".

"Therefore, this year is particularly worth writing a strong note. Since the beginning of this year, high-level exchanges between China and ASEAN countries have been hot, and Wang Yi's visit is also one of them. This visit will further strengthen China's relations with Southeast Asia."

Zhou Fangyin commented that Wang Yi's visit reflects that China attaches great importance to Southeast Asian countries and hopes to continue to deepen cooperation, especially the high-quality joint construction of the "the Belt and Road". At the same time, this visit is also taking place against the backdrop of changes in China's foreign minister and speculation in the international community, which can demonstrate the continuity of China's foreign policy and political stability to the outside world.

Deepening pragmatic cooperation

The second highlight is to convey positive messages in deepening economic and trade cooperation and promoting cultural exchanges.

In terms of cooperation between China and Singapore, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated that the two sides will hold a bilateral cooperation mechanism meeting at the level of Vice Premier of China and Singapore within the year, to coordinate and plan the next stage of cooperation and expand new areas of cooperation.

The new party expresses high expectations for this and hopes to further expand cooperation in areas such as trade and investment, finance and capital markets, connectivity, digital and green economy, and sustainable development.

Both sides will also accelerate the comprehensive resumption of direct flights between the two countries, and strengthen economic, trade, cultural and tourism exchanges and cooperation.

In terms of cooperation between China and Malaysia, according to Prime Minister Anwar, the two sides discussed cooperation in various fields, with special attention paid to issues such as investment and education.

Both sides reached a consensus on expanding investment.

According to Malaysian media reports, Anwar welcomes Chinese companies to expand their investment in Malaysia and thanks Wang Yi for his role in promoting significant Chinese investment in Malaysia, such as petrochemical giant Rongsheng and automobile manufacturer Geely.

Wang Yi also expressed that China supports and encourages more Chinese enterprises to invest and develop in Malaysia, create more new growth points for cooperation, and is willing to deepen cooperation between the two countries in agricultural technology, food security and other fields, and import more high-quality agricultural products from Malaysia.

Both sides also discussed how to promote cultural exchanges.

Anwar stated that both sides recognize the potential for further educational and academic exchanges. For example, in terms of education, there are currently 60000 Chinese students in Malaysia, and more and more Malaysians are choosing to study in China.

In terms of China Cambodia cooperation, the two sides expressed their willingness to enrich the China Cambodia "diamond six sided" cooperation framework, expand cooperation fields, and create a high-quality model for jointly building the "the Belt and Road".

"At present, the global economy is facing challenges and risks, and the recovery is weak and weak, including in the Asian region. In this context, China and ASEAN countries should strengthen practical economic and trade cooperation, utilize regional and resource advantages, and especially fully leverage the positive role of RCEP, which will be conducive to promoting post epidemic economic recovery." Liu Qing said.

Responding to the situation in the South China Sea

The third highlight is the response to the South China Sea hotspot during this visit.

Recently, the "Ren'ai Reef Incident" between China and the Philippines has attracted public attention.

On August 5, the Philippines illegally transported construction materials to Ren'ai Reef, the Nansha Islands, China. The Chinese maritime police ship carried out professional and restrained law enforcement to dissuade this.

However, the Philippine side claimed that China's interception and use of water cannons in attacks violated the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the arbitration award in the South China Sea, infringing on Philippine sovereignty and jurisdiction.

The United States also jumped out on the Philippine platform and accused China.

The outside world believes that Wang Yi's visit is a visit launched at a time of tension in the South China Sea. China looks forward to strengthening strategic communication and promoting regional stability.

During his visits to Singapore and Malaysia, Wang Yi exchanged views with political leaders from both countries on the current situation in the South China Sea and clarified China's position.

Throughout Wang Yi's speech, there was a clear hierarchy, a direct focus on the key points, and a deep and sincere tone.

One is to point out the source of the chaos - some forces such as the United States are afraid that the South China Sea will not become chaotic and continue to stir up trouble in this area.

The second is to issue a reminder to regional countries - China hopes that regional countries will remain vigilant against the mastermind behind the scenes and take the lead in maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea in their own hands.

The third is to provide advice to the Philippines - to abide by the consensus reached in the past, cherish the mutual trust accumulated through the improvement of bilateral relations, and move towards China as soon as possible, seeking effective ways to control the maritime situation.

The fourth is to acknowledge China's wishes - to resolve differences through dialogue with the Philippines, and to work with ASEAN countries to accelerate consultations on the "Code of Conduct for the South China Sea.".

Analysts believe that Wang Yi's speech is highly targeted and reflects China's timely communication and stance with relevant parties in times of tension, demonstrating an open, transparent, rational, and responsible attitude.

"The regional situation is becoming increasingly tense, and it is necessary for China to communicate with Southeast Asian countries and clarify the facts. At the same time, it also reminds neighboring countries to remain vigilant against the United States' use of third parties to provoke China and wield weapons." Liu Qing said.

In Liu Qing's view, both the actions of the Philippines and the United States demonstrate an intention to expand the problem and escalate risks, which not only damages the relationship between China and the Philippines, but also damages the relationship between ASEAN and China. Moreover, the "Code of Conduct for the South China Sea" has completed its second reading and made significant progress. At this time, the Ren'ai Reef incident occurred, which was an intentional attempt to interrupt the negotiation process and interfere with the formulation of the South China Sea Code of Conduct.

Zhou Fangyin pointed out that during the reign of former Philippine President Duterte, the situation in the South China Sea remained stable for six years. After Marcos took office, although he achieved his visit to China, he also showed a posture of approaching the United States, including opening up four new military bases to the United States, causing trouble in the South China Sea, and so on, which may break the tacit understanding between China and the Philippines. In the future, the South China Sea issue may become more complex.

Two roll call to the United States

It is also worth noting that according to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, during the visit, Wang Yi named the United States on two occasions. One is when discussing the situation in the South China Sea, and the other is when meeting with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Wang Yi told Li Xianlong that the United States is unwilling to see emerging countries such as China develop and revitalize due to the need to maintain unipolar hegemony.On the one hand, tearing off the guise of fair competition and coercing other countries to engage in unilateral protectionism against China. These reverse measures will only damage its own credibility and prove to the world that the United States has become the biggest unstable factor in the world today.

Analysts believe that another key background for Wang Yi's visit is that the United States is increasing its provocative efforts in Southeast Asia and intends to woo ASEAN countries to work together against China.

Zhou Fangyin pointed out that in recent years, the United States has attached increasing importance to Southeast Asia, with frequent high-level visits to the region and the launch of the "Indo Pacific Economic Framework" to attract ASEAN countries. President Biden also announced that he will soon visit Vietnam. Wang Yi's statement clearly expresses China's political stance, pointing out that the United States is undermining regional stability and reminding neighboring countries to remain vigilant.

Liu Qing believes that one means for the United States to contain China is to shape China's periphery. On the one hand, efforts are being made to pull ASEAN into an anti China encirclement; On the other hand, taking advantage of the friction and contradictions between China and ASEAN, the relationship between the two is strained. At the same time, the United States is also trying to tear apart ASEAN, such as using the US Philippines alliance to tear open the rift in ASEAN, which poses a risk to the overall political and diplomatic affairs of ASEAN. Therefore, it is necessary to be vigilant against the interference of the United States in disrupting the process of regional integration and disrupting the joint rise of ASEAN and China.

However, both scholars have expressed that ASEAN countries are unwilling to take sides and are concerned that the region may become a battleground for major powers.

During a meeting with Wang Yi, New First Vice Premier Huang Xuncai bluntly stated that the New Zealand side opposes jungle rule and power politics.

"For ASEAN, maintaining an independent and autonomous central position is the most important thing," said Liu Qing.

Just as Wang Yi emphasized the same position during his meeting with political leaders from the three countries: supporting the central position of ASEAN and promoting regional peace and stable development.