The conference on diplomacy with neighboring countries signaled a new era for proactive interaction between China and its neighbors, writes Chen Xiangyang.

China’s rapid rise to power has caught the attention of the world. China’s new diplomatic strategy of extending “olive branches” has some states worried and others intrigued. Can a balance be found between China’s national interests, the US pivot to Asia and the interests of regional actors such as ASEAN or Japan?

Xi Jinping has launched a new era of periphery diplomacy and will make for better political and economic relations with neighboring countries, closer security cooperation and stronger people-to-people contact.

All eyes are on the Central Committee’s Third Plenum scheduled to open in Beijing on November 9 for details about China’s economic reforms. As attention focuses on domestic economic development, however, Chinese foreign policy also deserves notice.

As free trade agreements flourish around the globe, He Weiwen examines the developments between the China-ASEAN FTA and the Trans-Pacific Partnership noting that while the US and China have been left out of each negotiation respectively, it does not mean the countries are competing directly against each other.

Although the US is firmly established in the region, many Pacific countries are concerned about US stability and consistency in policy. China’s recent confident actions have allowed for relations with ASEAN to grow and may have begun to act to supplant the US role. But do the two powers need to be competing or can they work in tandem?

In the wake of President Xi and Premier Li’s visits to Southeast Asia, China not only underscored its diplomatic commitment to the region but also elevated its partnerships with neighboring countries to more strategic ones. Zhai Kun examines in which ways the new Chinese leadership “upgraded” the China-ASEAN relations.

Cai Penghong reviews the achievements attained at the 2013 APEC Summit in Bali, and the 8th East Asia Summit and concludes that, despite President Obama’s absence, a number of noteworthy developments and deals have been put into place.

While US efforts to enhance stability in the Asia-Pacific region are welcome, they are inadequate to offset the rising strategic and economic uncertainty facing ASEAN member countries. Fortunately, ASEAN leaders seem to recognize this, and are working to establish a full-fledged diplomatic and economic “community” by 2015.

After recently conducting counter-piracy exercises in the Gulf of Aden, increased naval cooperation between the United States and China appears to be on a positive tract. As Su Xiaohui explains, China’s aspiration to become a maritime power should not be perceived as a threat to the United States.