China News Service, Nanning, January 2 (Reporter Huang Lingyan and Yang Qiang) The "Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement" (RCEP) came into effect on January 1.

This free trade agreement with the largest population and the greatest development potential in the world sets sail. It will consolidate and unify the super-large-scale market, strongly promote the growth of international trade and investment, and promote the recovery of the regional and global economies after the epidemic.

　　In 2021, the 30th anniversary of the establishment of dialogue relations between China and ASEAN.

This year, China-ASEAN announced the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Since the establishment of bilateral relations, the bilateral trade volume has expanded 85 times.

Observers believe that the entry into force of the RCEP agreement will empower the China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership, help the two sides build a closer community with a shared future, and inject new momentum into regional and world peace, stability, prosperity and development.

　　Highlight multilateralism and free trade

　　The RCEP, dominated by ASEAN, has very different economic development levels, diverse cultural backgrounds and political systems. There are both world-leading developed countries and underdeveloped countries, which are rare in the practice of global free trade areas.

　　ASEAN itself is highly diversified, with a more balanced, pragmatic and inclusive position. It has the credibility and ability to take into account the interests of developing and developed members, allowing as many members as possible to board the boat and share results, rather than imposing high standards and narrowing." Circle of friends".

Such opportunities are precious to developing countries.

　　Zheng Yongnian, Dean of the Institute for Advanced Studies of Global and Contemporary China at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen), pointed out that the world's economic center of gravity will be in Asia in the coming decades.

Before the signing of RCEP, the Asia-Pacific region lacked institutional constraints on trade. RCEP is the first step in the institutionalization of economic and trade in the Asia-Pacific region, which is of great significance.

He believes that multilateralism is more conducive to the integration of regional economy and trade.

RCEP is the result of consensus and a new type of multilateralism.

　　China is the first member of the non-ASEAN countries to formally complete the RCEP approval process, and has always been determined to maintain the multilateral trading system and promote the process of regional economic integration.

　　Deng Xijun, China's ambassador to ASEAN, said that at a time when the world is struggling, the signing and timely entry into force of RCEP marks a major victory for multilateralism and free trade, and also gives a heavy blow to the fallacy of "anti-globalization" and "decoupling".

The success of RCEP sends a strong signal: the recovery in the post-epidemic era must rely on multilateralism and openness. Closeness and exclusivity and deliberate "decoupling" will only be counterproductive.

　　Ge Hongliang, deputy dean of the ASEAN College of Guangxi University for Nationalities, who holds the same view, also said that the smooth implementation of RCEP in the post-epidemic era shows that China and ASEAN have jointly upheld the multilateralism that both sides have defended for a long time.

　　China-ASEAN economic and trade ties are closer

　　The opportunities contained in the 15 member states within the RCEP framework are unprecedented.

RCEP takes effect, and more than 90% of the goods trade between approved members will eventually achieve zero tariffs, which will help different member countries attract the division of labor that meets their own technology and labor quality, thereby providing an opportunity for the re-layout of the cross-regional supply chain.

　　ASEAN Secretary-General Lin Yuhui said that in ASEAN and China, SMEs account for more than 90%. RCEP will help reduce non-tariff barriers and provide more opportunities for SMEs to participate in regional and global value chains.

At the same time, RCEP is committed to promoting and protecting investment, advancing investment facilitation, and ensuring equal market access, which will bring more opportunities for bilateral investment cooperation.

　　The industrial chains of China and ASEAN are highly complementary and their supply chains are closely connected.

Based on the role of RCEP, the flow of factors, division of labor, and market integration between China and ASEAN will surely be further improved, fully unleash the potential for economic and trade cooperation between the two sides, and ultimately promote China-ASEAN goods trade to a new high, and promote both sides' service trade and investment to achieve a leap.

　　Lei Xiaohua, deputy director of the Institute of Southeast Asia of the Guangxi Academy of Social Sciences, said that with the help of Japan and South Korea's R&D technology, China's manufacturing, ASEAN assembly, and a large market in the region, a brand-new supply chain industry chain can be built.

The entry into force of RCEP will bring closer economic and trade ties between China and the ASEAN region, which is a new change in the world economic structure.

　　According to Xu Liping, a researcher at the Institute of Asia-Pacific and Global Strategies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and director of the Southeast Asian Studies Center, China is moving towards a stage of high-quality economic development. The strong domestic demand potential makes China an indispensable partner for ASEAN countries.

With the launch of RCEP, more products from ASEAN countries will enter the Chinese market, which will undoubtedly strengthen the economic and trade relations between China and ASEAN.

　　Open up a new chapter of regional integration and common prosperity

　　China and ASEAN have established a dialogue relationship for 30 years, and the trade scale has reached more than 600 billion U.S. dollars.

In the context of the global epidemic, ASEAN surpassed the EU and historically became China's largest trading partner.

The upgrade of China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement has laid a solid foundation for the signing and implementation of RCEP.

　　Deng Xijun believes that RCEP will gradually bridge the development gap between members by increasing economic and technical assistance to developing economies and least developed economies in ASEAN, effectively promoting regional coordinated and balanced development, and promoting the establishment of an open regional economic integration development. pattern.

　　Benefiting from the deepening of bilateral relations and the continuous enhancement of mutual trust, the warming of China-ASEAN economic and trade exchanges will be a long-term trend.

Zhang Jianping, director of the Regional Economic Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Commerce, judged that in the future, China and ASEAN will take the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area as the core and infrastructure interconnection as the starting point, and play two major roles in the new unified market framework of RCEP. The role of the core market.

　　He said that RCEP will allow ASEAN and China to move towards an integrated development.

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