The ASEAN+3 framework has become the most important multilateralinstitution. It was established when there was growing momentum to strengthen regional cooperation among East Asian countries because of the experience of the Asian currency and financial crisis. Since 1997, the ASEAN+3 summit meeting has been held every year along with various ministerial meetings, such as foreign ministers’ meetings, under the ASEAN+3 framework. Thus, the ASEAN+3 framework has acquired significant scope and depth.
Furthermore, since the beginning of the ASEAN+3 process, there have been those who believe that ASEAN+3 should deal not only with economic issues, but in the areas of politics and security, including transnational issues. At the ASEAN+3 summit meeting in Cambodia in November 2002, the leaders expressed their intention to develop counter-terrorism measures. At the same meeting, a clear message was issued in the Chairman’s Press Statement urging North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons development program.
China has made great efforts to strengthen economic cooperation and to maintain stability in East Asia through the ASEAN+3 and ASEAN+1 mechanisms. During the sixth ASEAN+3 summit meeting in November 2002, China put forward a 23-point proposal to promote regional cooperation and common prosperity in East Asia. Altogether, China signed or released 11 important documents, including the Framework Agreement on China–ASEAN Comprehensive Economic Cooperation, which launched the process towards a free trade area between the two sides; the national report on China’s participation in the Greater Mekong River subregional development, which set in motion cooperation between China and ASEAN in the Mekong Basin; the joint declaration on non-traditional security issues, which broadened the scope of cooperation in this area; the declaration on a Code of Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, which provided the political foundation for a stable South China Sea area; the memorandum of understanding on agricultural cooperation, which initiated moves towards China–ASEAN bilateral cooperation in priority areas; and the Asia Debt Reduction Plan to provide Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar with zero-tariff treatment for most of their exports to China, thus making tangible contributions to poverty eradication in the region. The Chinese leader also proposed a medium to long-term IT cooperation program. ASEAN members unanimously endorsed his proposal. China–ASEAN cooperation in the priority fields is making solid progress.
Under the ASEAN+3 framework, China can cooperate with other countries on some important issues, such as economics and integration, anti-terrorism, anti-piracy, environmental protection, illegal immigration, drug trafficking, and so on.
Trilateral cooperation between China, South Korea and Japan provides a very importantmultilateral mechanism. Spurred by the first China–South Korea–Japan summit in 1999, trilateral cooperation has promoted cooperation centring on economic, financial and environmental areas towards improving prosperity in the region.
At the China–South Korea–Japan summit held in Cambodia in November 2002, the three countries expressed the view that, based on their relationship of trust, they would further deepen ‘cooperation for prosperity’ and promote trilateral cooperation in a wide range of areas. They also exchanged views regarding the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Furthermore, the three countries agreed that they would promote trilateral cooperation in the future, prioritising the five areas of economics and trade, information and telecommunications, environmental protection, human resources development and cultural cooperation.
During the summit meeting, some economic research institutions of the three countries submitted a report on a proposal for joint policies and proposed a feasibility study of a China–South Korea–Japan free trade zone and its possible economic impact. The leaders of the three countries endorsed this report in principle and supported the proposed feasibility study on the envisaged free trade zone.
At the China–South Korea–Japan summit held in October 2003, at the initiative of Chinese Premier, Wen Jiabao, the three countries issued a joint declaration on promoting trilateral cooperation, the first such document issued by the leaders of the three countries. The document defined the basic framework and future direction of trilateral cooperation. In December 2003, China, Japan and South Korea agreed to establish a trilateral committee, to be led by the foreign ministers of the three countries, to undertake research, planning and observation of trilateral cooperation in different fields so as to fulfil the objectives put forward in the joint declaration.
China and South Korea have also made significant progress in their bilateral economic cooperation. In 2002, China’s trade with South Korea reached US$44.1 billion, up by 22.8 per cent from 2001. China (including the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region) has replaced the United States as South Korea’s largest export market.
The advancement of China–South Korea–Japan trilateral cooperation in a wide range of areas, such as cooperation for prosperity and stability, is the driving force promoting East Asian cooperation. It is expected that China, Japan and South Korea will take the initiative to further advance specific cooperation with ASEAN countries so that this will lead to the expansion and deepening of regional cooperation in East Asia as a whole.
Through the mechanism of trilateral cooperation, China and South Korea can cooperate in the economic and security fields. At present, China, Japan and South Korea are facing many new security challenges, which can be classified into two fields: non-traditional and traditional.
In non-traditional security sectors, China, Japan and South Korea share many common interests and have to cooperate to deal with them. Furthermore, because these challenges are transnational or global problems, China, Japan and South Korea have also to rely on multilateral institutions.
China has become the biggest trading partner of South Korea and Japan. There is great potential for trade and economic cooperation between China, South Korea and Japan, which would be beneficial not only for the three countries, but for the world economy. In China–South Korea–Japan relations, economic exchange has always been at the forefront, and continues to expand and develop. In order to further speed up trilateral economic cooperation, it is necessary for them to develop a framework for a China–South Korea–Japan free trade area in the near future.
China views its relations with Japan and South Korea from a long-term standpoint, concluding that it is in China’s national interest to cooperate actively and positively with other countries, especially its neighbours such as South Korea.
China and other countries share many common objectives and interests within the multilateral institutions of East Asia. Close cooperation between China and other countries will be one of the most important preconditions for the establishment of an East Asian free trade area, which will be one of the most important components of Asian security cooperation. US participation in Asian security cooperation is also necessary.