摘要：On August 26, as part of the Kuala Lumpur Roundtable on Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation, the Boao Forum for Asia convened a sess
——Special Report I of Kuala Lumpur Roundtable on Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation of the Boao Forum for Asia
On August 26, as part of the Kuala Lumpur Roundtable on Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation, the Boao Forum for Asia convened a session on More Openness & Better Connectivity：the Future of Asia Pacific Integration, chaired by Secretary General Zhang Jun. More than 100 representatives from about 20 countries and regions attended the meeting. Representatives from China, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Nepal, Peru, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Turkey as well as relevant international organizations had in-depth exchanges of views on the current situation and future path of the Asia-Pacific regional cooperation.
Adhere to multilateralism and open development in the face of severe challenges
Nowadays, unilateralism and protectionism are exerting an all-round impact on the world economy, global economic governance and the international order, from which Asia and the Asia-Pacific region have also been severely affected. Meanwhile, the world economy has also entered a period of deep transformation, bringing about many new issues and challenges. Under new circumstances, the urgency and importance of the Asia-Pacific regional cooperation are becoming increasingly prominent. There are many issues that require us to think deeply and explore solutions and plans. To accelerate Asian regional cooperation, participants believe it is necessary to handle regionalism and multilateralism properly and adhere to the principle of open regionalism.
Dr. Mohd Faiz Abdullah, Chairman of the Institute of Strategic & International Studies, Malaysia, indicated that openness, integration and connectivity brought strength and opportunities to the Asia-Pacific region. Dr. Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria, Former Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat and Director of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs, believed that if regional stakeholders don’t act in a collective and coordinated manner, there is a risk of facing an unjust and unreasonable new order, with traditional international order and global governance losing their influence. According to Dr. Surakiart Sathirathai, Former Deputy Prime Minister and Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, multilateralism might be weakening, but Asia has blazed its own trail. As long as openness and mutual trust are combined, and connectivity and shared responsibility are integrated, the Asia-Pacific region can establish a new, resilient, inclusive and future-oriented integration standard.
Carlos Gutierrez, Former Secretary of Commerce, USA, indicated that it is the hope of the world that multilateralism still enjoys widespread support, which inspired him deeply. It is not necessarily a bad thing that regional integration replaces global institutions such as the WTO, which is much better than unilateralism or splitting into individual bilateral agreements. Jenny Shipley, Former Prime Minister of New Zealand, stressed that we shouldn’t be overcome by the dysfunction of the global governance system. We should revitalize mechanisms such as ASEAN, the AEM and APEC and solutions will eventually be found. Dr. Marty Natalegawa, Former Foreign Minister of Indonesia, also believed that the path of Asia-Pacific integration is not singular. Regional leaders should fully exert their leadership, make good use of upcoming events such as APEC and EAS, and engage in free and candid discussions.
Sun Weidong, Secretary General of the China-Central Asia Format, argued that open and connected cooperation is one of the key reasons for the Asia-Pacific region to maintain its development and innovation vitality and become the locomotive driving economic globalization, which will also provide a broader space for the Asia-Pacific and Central Asia regions’ development. Juan Carlos Mathews, Former Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism, Peru, introduced the important role of multilateral cooperation in promoting domestic employment, reducing regional competition and enhancing mutually beneficial cooperation based on the country's development experience, and expressed his willingness to deepen cooperation with other countries. Beata Stoczynska, Executive Director of the Asia-Europe Foundation, insisted that the integration of the Asia-Pacific region far exceeds the scope of geography or trade. It is not only an issue of the Asia-Pacific region, but also a global responsibility. The central position of ASEAN, APEC cooperation and the broader Asia-Pacific framework are important pillars of global stability, and Europe has also benefited greatly from the openness and connectivity of the region. All parties should firmly advocate openness, commit to connectivity and safeguard the rules-based international order.
Strengthen regional connectivity and optimize the layout of industrial and supply chains
Participants generally agreed that it was necessary to consolidate the foundation of Asian regional cooperation through all-round connectivity and supply chain cooperation, and to consolidate Asia's position as the world’s factory and global growth engine.
According to Sun Weidong, the Central Asian countries attach great importance to developing cross-border transportation cooperation, actively participate in the promotion of regional connectivity, and smooth the international land-sea combined transport channels. This not only effectively reduced the cost of international trade, but also turned the Central Asian countries from landlocked countries into land-linked countries, thus helping the Central Asian region further integrate into the global industrial and supply chains. As two major emerging markets, Central Asian and Southeast Asian countries, with diverse and complementary economies and broad space for cooperation, should establish closer trade partnerships.
Dr. Mohd Faiz Abdullah indicated that connectivity, including not only physical networks such as ports, power grids and transport systems, but also digital and human networks, is the lifeblood of the economy. Volkan Bozkir, President of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly and Former Minister of European Union Affairs of Turkey, stressed the need to enhance the resilience of production and supply chains through connectivity, create a secure and stable supply chain network, and lay a more inclusive, sustainable and secure foundation for growth. Dr. Surakiart Sathirathai also emphasized that diversifying development and deepening connectivity is not just a matter of roads and ports, but also of digital networks, financial interoperability, cross-border payment systems, education and talent flows. Dr. Yuba Raj Khatiwada, Economic and Development Adviser to the Prime Minister of Nepal, emphasized the significance of cross-regional and intra-regional financial connectivity in an era of increasing digitalization and information technology. Since ASEAN are among regions with the lowest degree of financial service integration, it is necessary to consider integrating payment systems to better develop financial markets and reduce reliance on Western markets.
Stimulate the vitality of existing regional trade and investment arrangements and unleash greater potential of regional free trade
The future of regional integration is inseparable from the establishment of cooperation mechanisms. Asian regional cooperation should advance on two fronts, expanding membership to enhance coverage and representativeness and foster inclusive growth, while simultaneously raising standards to promote high-quality development across the region.
Dr. Mohd Faiz Abdullah argued that the WTO and other multilateral institutions need to be reformed to restore their credibility. Volkan Bozkir considered it inefficient to solve the problems of the 21st century with the tools of the 20th century. Multilateral frameworks such as the WTO, APEC and G20 should not merely be empty talk halls. They should be dedicated to addressing the legitimate concerns of the 21st century, such as digital trade, e-commerce and sustainable development. They should also promote higher-level regional trade arrangements such as RCEP and CPTPP, and create a testing ground for the next generation of trade rules. Dr. Surakiart Sathirathai stressed that the Asia-Pacific region must build trust and dialogue, and link sub-regional, regional and inter-regional arrangements to form a more coherent cooperation framework. With its scale, resources and commitment to the development of Asia, China is fully capable of playing this connecting role.
Dr. Rebecca Maria pointed out that the withdrawal of the United States from the TPP and the birth of the CPTPP provide an example that when we unite and move forward, we do not necessarily face failure due to one member’s withdrawal. ASEAN is a powerful mechanism for promoting cooperation among member states and advancing integration, while APEC provides a valuable pilot space for new ideas and policies. Governments of all countries can utilize the existing resources of ASEAN and APEC to formulate policies, expand domestic demand and reduce reliance on export-driven growth.
Chi Fulin, President of China Institute for Reform and Development, proposed to advance RCEP’s transformation from 1.0 to 2.0 and build a free trade area that is implementable, monitorable, enforceable, and governable through rule upgrading, institutional improvement, deeper market opening, and stronger governance. ASEAN centrality should be adhered to, ASEAN’s market dynamism and growth potential must be fully unleashed, and ASEAN’s unique role should be played. We should align RCEP with trilateral economic cooperation among China, Japan, and Korea, and work toward the early conclusion of a China-Japan-Korea free trade agreement under the RCEP framework. We should achieve new breakthroughs in building a unified regional market, for example, facilitating the admission of Hong Kong, China, and other key economies to RCEP, and promoting RCEP’s alignment with the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Deepen cooperation in scientific and technological innovation, and proactively adapt to and integrate into the global industrial transformation wave
The digital economy and green economy are becoming new confidence for Asia as the world’s factory and global growth engine, a rare opportunity for Asia to catch up with Europe and the United States and win the competition of the 21st century, and also a new handle and focus of Asian regional cooperation.
Daniel Andrews, Former Premier of Victoria, Australia, focused on actions to address climate change. He pointed out the Asia-Pacific region, as the world’s economic growth engine and one of the regions with the fastest-growing energy demand, is also at the greatest risk of inaction in addressing climate change. The development of clean energy, green finance and sustainable infrastructure is not only crucial for the Asia-Pacific region, but also for the entire planet. When other countries lean towards protectionism and narrow nationalism and abandon their leadership responsibilities, the Asia-Pacific region should step forward and turn the huge challenges into broader opportunities.
Dr. Hul Seingheng, Under Secretary of State of the Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology & Innovation, Cambodia, stressed that regional cooperation is not a choice but a necessity to ensure sustainable development, resilience, and shared prosperity. As we look to the future, there are three areas where deeper cooperation will be essential. The first is resilient and sustainable development, to embrace green technologies, renewable energy, and circular economy practices. The second is digital and innovation partnership, to promote digital literacy, bridge the digital divide, and empower startups and innovators across borders. The third is human capital and knowledge exchange, to cultivate a generation equipped to lead Asia-Pacific into a future of integration and prosperity.
In his concluding remarks, Zhang Jun emphasized that Asia-Pacific cooperation represents the correct direction of regional cooperation. We must adhere to open development, maximize common interests through openness, and achieve inclusive, fair and win-win development. Multilateralism serves the broadest interests of all countries in the Asia-Pacific region. We must firmly safeguard the multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core, and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of global governance. As regional cooperation and integration in the Asia-Pacific region are becoming increasingly important, we should enhance the integration and coordination of existing regional arrangements such as RCEP and CPTPP, and keep moving towards the vision of the FTAAP. Under current circumstances, it is even more important and urgent to build a diversified, smooth and secure global and regional production and supply chain. Thus, we should increase investment and vigorously promote connectivity. Asia and the Asia-Pacific region should continue to lead the world’s green and digital transformation and maintain strong economic resilience. What’s more, we should give better play to the role of platforms such as APEC and BFA, strengthen policy coordination, enhance mutual understanding and trust, and promote practical cooperation.
来源：博鳌亚洲论坛
