On 31 July 2019, H.E. Mr. Teodoro L. Locsin, Jr., Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of the Philippines, in his capacity as Country Coordinator for ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations, co-chaired the ASEAN-China Ministerial Meeting together with H.E. Mr. Wang Yi, State Councilor and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China. The meeting is part of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meetings with its Dialogue Partners in Post Ministerial Conferences (PMC+1). 

          The Meeting reviewed ASEAN-China relations and discussed its future direction. Both sides agreed that cooperation should focus on connectivity, digital economy, Smart Cities Network, media exchanges, and preparations for the 22^nd ASEAN-China Summit this November in Thailand.  

          The Meeting took note of current international and regional developments, such as ASEAN and China’s increasing trade and investment, the ASEAN Outlook on Indo-Pacific, and the progress of negotiations on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea. They welcomed the conclusion of the first reading of the Single Code of Conduct Draft Negotiating Text. The Meeting commended the cooperation in various fields to strengthen ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership, as well as to realise the ASEAN-China Strategic Vision 2030. Both ASEAN and China reiterated their support for multilateral trade mechanisms and the collaboration to enhance regional connectivity through synergies between the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity 2025 and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), as well as people-to-people exchanges. 

Prior to the Meeting, ASEAN Foreign Ministers and the Foreign Minister of the People’s Republic of China attended the Launching Ceremony of the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship Programme. The Programme was proposed by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at the 21^st ASEAN-China Summit in 2018, and includes scholarships for postgraduate degrees, research grants, and training at top Chinese universities. It demonstrates ASEAN and China’s shared commitment to promote youth exchange, student mobility, and educational cooperation to promote better understanding among youths of both sides. 

         China was accorded Dialogue Partner status at the 29^th AMM in 1996 in Jakarta, Indonesia, and subsequently became a Strategic Partner for Peace and Prosperity at the 7^th ASEAN-China Summit in 2003, in Bali, Indonesia. Last year, ASEAN and China celebrated the 15^th anniversary of their Strategic Partnership and issued the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership Vision 2030. 

ASEAN and China currently engage with each other in twelve main areas of cooperation such as agriculture, information and communication technology (ICT), human resources development, development of the Mekong Region and investment. The Philippines is currently the Country Coordinator for ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations.

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