CHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT OF THE 16TH ASEAN-CHINA SUMMIT

9 October 2013 Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam

1. The 16th ASEAN-China Summit chaired by His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, was held on 9 October 2013 in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam. The Summit was attended by all Heads of State/Government of the Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and H.E. Li Keqiang, Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China.

2. The ASEAN Leaders welcomed H.E. Li Keqiang to the Meeting, who attended the ASEAN-China Summit for the first time since taking up the post of Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China.

3. We acknowledged that China continues to be one of ASEAN’s most active dialogue partners as it contributes to the development and the promotion of peace, stability and prosperity in the region. In this context, the ASEAN Leaders appreciated China’s continued support for ASEAN Centrality in the evolving regional architecture through ASEAN-led processes, including the ASEAN Plus Three (APT), the East Asia Summit (EAS), the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in the ASEAN Community building process towards the long-term goal of building an East Asia community.

4. The ASEAN Leaders also encouraged China to support the implementation of the Roadmap for an ASEAN Community (2009-2015) as well as the Bali Declaration on ASEAN Community in a Global Community of Nations (Bali Concord III). As ASEAN is embarking towards an ASEAN Community, we acknowledged the need to deepen and enhance ASEAN’s dialogue partnership and external relations, with the aim of having an equal, mutually beneficial and meaningful partnership. We noted ASEAN’s initiative to develop an ASEAN Community Post-2015 Vision and welcomed the Bandar Seri Begawan Declaration on the ASEAN Community’s Post-2015 Vision.

5. We reaffirmed our strong commitment in further strengthening the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership particularly in the eleven priority areas, namely agriculture, information and communication technology, human resource development, investment, Mekong Basin Development, transportation, energy, culture, tourism, public health and environment.

6. We welcomed the progress made in the implementation of the Plan of Action for the period of 2011-2015 to implement the Joint Declaration on the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity. In this regard, we noted the third progress report for the implementation of the 2011-2015 Plan of Action to Implement the Joint Declaration of the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity.

7. We recognised that this year marks the 10th Anniversary of the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership and we welcomed its various commemorative activities held in ASEAN Member States and China, including the High Level Forum on the 10th Anniversary of the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership on 2 August 2013 in Bangkok, the Special ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on 29 August 2013 in Beijing and the Workshop on the 10th Anniversary of the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership: Achievements, Challenges, Opportunities and Future Direction on 17-18 September 2013 in Siem Reap. We underscored the importance of the discussions of the said meetings, especially in reviewing the past achievements and charting the future direction of the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership.

8. We agreed to adopt the Joint Statement of the 16th ASEAN-China Summit on Commemoration of the 10th Anniversary of the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership which expresses ASEAN and China’s collective commitment in further strengthening the ASEAN-China relationship.

9. We recalled the successful outcomes of the 19th ASEAN-China Senior Officials’ Consultation held on 2 April 2013 in Beijing where it was agreed that ASEAN and China could deepen existing cooperation in trade and investment facilitation, connectivity, and maritime cooperation, while expanding the scope of cooperation to encompass other areas such as food and energy security, science and technology, transportation, and education.

10. We are committed to promoting strategic relations and maintaining close high-level exchanges and contacts, and continuing to deepen political mutual trust and confidence. We noted with appreciation China’s proposed treaty on good-neighbourliness and friendly cooperation. We acknowledged Indonesia’s idea in having a treaty of friendship and cooperation that includes a wider Indo-Pacific region, beyond ASEAN and China.

11. We agreed to step up dialogue and cooperation among our defence establishments, and looked forward to holding an informal ASEAN-China defence ministers meeting in China at a convenient time in the future. We appreciated China\'s contributions in ensuring the success of the ADMM-Plus Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief and Military Medicine Exercise (ADMM-Plus HADR and MM Ex) that was held in Brunei Darussalam in June 2013 especially in enhancing confidence building, regional capacity, interoperability and coordination in addressing non-tranditional security challenges, in particular disaster management. In other areas of non-traditional security, we also looked forward to enhancing cooperation with China under the Plan of Action to Implement the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Cooperation in the Field of Non-Traditional Security Issues, particularly in addressing transnational crime, especially the trafficking of illegal drugs and narcotics.

12. We welcomed the adoption of the Terms of Reference of the ASEAN Regional Mine Action Centre (ARMAC) by ASEAN Leaders, which would serve as a centre of excellence to encourage efforts to address explosive remnants of war for interested ASEAN Member States, and shall facilitate cooperation with relevant institutions, including the United Nations Mine Action Service and the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining.

13. We noted with satisfaction the substantive work undertaken by China’s Mission to ASEAN in Jakarta and the Committee of Permanent Representatives to ASEAN (CPR), as well as the ASEAN Secretariat, in further strengthening the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership.

14. We welcomed China’s proposal to establish an ASEAN-China Port Cities Cooperation Network to promote exchanges and cooperation in port development, port-related industries, international trade, culture and tourism. The ASEAN Leaders appreciated China’s comprehensive plan for utilising the ASEAN-China Maritime Cooperation Fund to provide financial support to ASEAN-China cooperation in the areas of maritime connectivity, marine science and technology as well as maritime scientific research, search and rescue, disaster management, and navigation safety.

15. We reaffirmed the importance of the maintenance of peace, stability and maritime security in the region. We further stressed the importance of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), the Joint Statement of the 15th ASEAN-China Summit on the 10th Anniversary of the DOC in 2012 and the adoption of the Guidelines for the Implementation of the DOC in 2011. In this regard, we reaffirmed our commitment to continue to fully and effectively implement the DOC, to build trust and confidence in order to enhance maritime security, and encourage the concerned parties to resolve their disputes by peaceful means, in accordance with the universally recognised principles of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), without resorting to the threat or use of force, while exercising self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability.

16. We welcomed the positive outcomes achieved in the first official consultations on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC) and the implementation of the DOC at the successful convening of the 6th Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) on the Implementation of the DOC and the 9th Joint Working Group (JWG) on the Implementation of the DOC on 14-15 September 2013 in Suzhou, China. We will continue to maintain the momentum of the regular official consultations and work towards the adoption of the COC as provided for by the DOC. We welcomed with appreciation the idea of developing hotlines of communications in order to respond expeditiously to incidents at sea, including search and rescue.

17. We noted that China continues to be ASEAN’s largest trading partner since 2009, while ASEAN continues to be China’s third largest trading partner since 2010. We also noted that, based on ASEAN statistics, the two-way trade volume has expanded at an annual growth rate of 21.6% from 2009. We expressed confidence in our goal to achieve bilateral trade of US$500 billion by 2015.

18. We reaffirmed our opposition to trade protectionism. We welcomed the progress achieved in implementing the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA). In view of the changing circumstances after the signing of the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and China in 2002, we believed it is necessary to explore ways on how the ACFTA could be further improved so as to better respond to the evolving global economic architecture. In this regard, we welcomed the initiative for an upgraded ACFTA by, among others, improving overall market access conditions and trade balance between both sides as well as expanding the scope and coverage of the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and China and therefore, tasked our officials to commence discussions within this year with an aim to conclude the process as early as possible.

19. We noted the progress of negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) which would build upon the ASEAN Plus One Free Trade Agreements, including the ACFTA. We acknowledged that the RCEP recognises ASEAN Centrality in the emerging regional economic architecture and contribute to economic integration, equitable economic development, and strengthening economic cooperation among participating countries. In this regard, we agreed to actively push forward the negotiations of the RCEP for the greater economic integration of East Asia.

20. We welcomed the convening of the first ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM) Roadshow to China on 23-25 October 2013 as a landmark in ASEAN-China trade relations. We looked forward to showcasing ASEAN as a single investment destination featuring the benefits and advantages of the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA), ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement (ACIA) and ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS), as well as fruitful dialogue between private sectors and investors from ASEAN and China.

21. We welcomed the 10th China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO) that was held on 3-6 September 2013 in Nanning, China under the theme of “Regional Cooperation and Development: New Opportunities, New Impetus, New Stages.” We commended the success of the CAEXPO in boosting trade and investment relations between ASEAN and China.

22. We congratulated Indonesia for its able Chairmanship of APEC in 2013. We welcomed China’s Chairmanship of APEC in 2014 and hoped that the synergy between ASEAN and APEC would be further strengthened. We also underlined the importance of the continuation of connectivity, infrastructure development and investment agenda in APEC in 2014 and other issues of common concern.

23. The ASEAN leaders appreciated China’s strong support for the implementation of the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity (MPAC). We welcomed the Special ASEAN-China Transport Ministers’ Meeting on Connectivity on 2 September 2013 in Nanning and the 2nd Meeting between the ASEAN Connectivity Coordinating Committee (ACCC) and the Chinese Working Committee on China-ASEAN Connectivity Coordinating Committee (CWC-CACCC) on 28 August 2013 in Bandar Seri Begawan, and would work together to determine and implement key projects to support ASEAN Connectivity.

24. We prioritised connectivity as an important area of cooperation under the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership. In this regard, we agreed to accelerate regional infrastructure connectivity efforts as well as welcomed China\'s initiative to set up an Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank to provide financial support to regional infrastructure projects, with priority on ASEAN connectivity.

25. We welcomed the work of the ASEAN-China Centre in Beijing in facilitating trade, investment, tourism, and cultural exchanges between ASEAN and China. We noted the work of the Joint Council of the ASEAN-China Centre in ensuring the effective work of the ASEAN-China Centre to promote economic and cultural cooperation.

26. We agreed to designate the year 2014 as the ASEAN-China Cultural Exchange Year. We noted the great progress that ASEAN and China have achieved in tourism and that China has become the second biggest source of tourists for ASEAN countries, where in 2012, ASEAN received almost 8.76 million tourists from China while China received nearly 5.9 million tourists from ASEAN. In this regard, we looked forward to China’s initiative to hold a China-ASEAN Tourism Forum in China and the ongoing efforts to increase further two-way tourists visits between ASEAN and China.

27. We noted the progress made in ASEAN and China collaboration on health in the areas of communicable diseases, emerging infectious diseases, and traditional and complementary alternative medicine. We looked forward to further strengthening the joint collaboration in health development as agreed in the signed ASEAN-China MOU on Health Cooperation.

28. We recognised that the launching of the ASEAN-China Science and Technology Partnership Programme (STEP) in 2012 was an important milestone in ASEAN-China Science and Technology Cooperation. We recognised that the launching of the ASEAN-China Science and Technology Partnership Programme (STEP) in 2012 was an important milestone in ASEAN-China Science and Technology Cooperation. We noted with satisfaction that under STEP, 4 major cooperation programs including 10 ASEAN-China joint laboratories, ASEAN-China Remote Sensing Satellite Data Sharing and Service Platform, ASEAN-China Technology Transfer Center, and Talented Young Scientist Visiting China have yielded concrete progress. We looked forward to the finalisation of the MOU on ASEAN-China Cooperation on Science and Technology. We looked forward to the finalisation of the MOU on ASEAN-China Cooperation on Science and Technology.

29. We welcomed the establishment of the Network of ASEAN-China Think Tanks (NACT) and expressed our hope that this would provide a good platform for the increase of academic exchanges between ASEAN and China.

30. We congratulated Thailand for a successful first year as the Country Coordinator for ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations. We looked forward to further enhancing the ASEAN-China relationship.