Yin Chengde, Research Fellow, China Foundation for International Studies
Jan 18, 2018
Xi Jinping’s thought on diplomacy has steered China’s diplomacy from success to success, and serves as a guide for maintaining world peace, and development.
Richard Javad Heydarian, Professorial Chairholder in Geopolitics, Polytechnic University of the Philippines
Jan 11, 2018
ASEAN has ably brought together former rivals and among the world’s most (ideologically and socio-economically) diverse nations under a single roof. Yet, with the rise of China and the demise of the old American-led order, the ASEAN is facing an existential moment, which may require strategic soul-searching and major institutional reforms.
Wang Jisi, President, Institute of International and Strategic Studies, Peking University
Zhao Jianwei, Research Assistant, Peking University
Dec 15, 2017
China should start building a community with a shared future for mankind from the Asia Pacific.
Richard Javad Heydarian, Professorial Chairholder in Geopolitics, Polytechnic University of the Philippines
Dec 05, 2017
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) wrapped up the 50th anniversary of its founding by finalizing a series of landmark agreements. Among them was the much-anticipated framework of a Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea, which has been more than two decades in the making. Yet, upon closer examination, the diplomatic jubilation over the trajectory of COC negotiations rings hollow.
Nov 13, 2017
U.S. President Donald Trump and Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang underscored the importance of free and open access to South China Sea, in a joint statement
Curtis S. Chin, Former U.S. Ambassador to Asian Development Bank
Sep 08, 2017
Garnering much less attention from the ASEAN summit was the single paragraph that “noted Timor-Leste’s application for ASEAN membership and looked forward to the continued discussion” about reports and capacity building regarding that small Southeast Asian island nation’s longstanding efforts to join the regional bloc. This newest of Asian nations – having regained independence from Indonesia in 2002 – deserves ASEAN, U.S. and Chinese investment and support for its efforts to further integrate and engage with the wider region.
Zhu Feng, Director, Institute of International Studies, Nanjing University
Aug 25, 2017
Although the signing of the framework of the Code of Conduct is only a small step forward, it’s actually of great significance for China-ASEAN relations.
Richard Javad Heydarian, Professorial Chairholder in Geopolitics, Polytechnic University of the Philippines
Aug 22, 2017
Crucially, the ASEAN meeting underscored the “importance of non-militarization and self-restraint” for both claimant states as well as “all other states.” The ASEAN communiqué effectively echoed China’s line, since Beijing has opposed the Philippines’ arbitration award, shunned a “legally binding” COC, underplayed its reclamation activities in disputed waters, and called upon external powers such as the U.S. to stay out of the conflict.
Lucio Blanco Pitlo III, Research Fellow, Asia-Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation
Aug 22, 2017
ASEAN meetings almost always generate expectations of raising the South China Sea (SCS) disputes to the point where the success of the meeting boils down to how tough the adopted language is in the final official statements. Considering the breadth and depth of issues covered by ASEAN in its annual meetings, such reduction is unfortunate and unfair.
Xue Li, Senior Fellow, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
Aug 09, 2017
The United States has revamped its maritime response to Chinese policy in the South China Sea, conducting its first Freedom of Navigation Operation (FONOP) since President Trump took office. While China cannot allow this action to go unchecked, it should consider its larger global and regional power objectives before determining its response.