"ASEAN has been a positive contributor to peace, regional stability, and shared prosperity. Therefore, I invite China to support ASEAN centrality and support various ASEAN mechanisms,"
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi urged China to contribute to maintaining peace, stability, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.

Marsudi conveyed this at the ASEAN-China Post-Ministerial Conference (PMC) Meeting in Vientiane, Laos, on Friday.

"ASEAN has been a positive contributor to peace, regional stability, and shared prosperity. Therefore, I invite China to support ASEAN centrality and support various ASEAN mechanisms," she noted in a written statement from her office.

At the meeting attended by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Marsudi lauded China for making the Bandung Spirit a reference to maintain regional peace and stability.

The minister highlighted that the spirit of solidarity had been voiced since the 1955 Asia-Africa Conference while emphasizing that it has become increasingly important nowadays, especially amid the current global situation.

"Suspicion and mutual distrust are the main factors distracting (people from fostering) mutual understanding. Our shared commitment to maintain dialogue to maintain regional peace and stability is necessary," she revealed.

Furthermore, Marsudi drew attention to the issue in the South China Sea that continues to burden the ASEAN-China relations.

ASEAN foreign ministers underscored the importance of implementing the Declaration of Conduct (DoC) and immediately completing negotiations on the Code of Conduct (CoC) as a behavior guideline in the strategic waters.

"Indonesia's position is consistent. All claims must be resolved peacefully through direct dialogue between interested parties," Marsudi stressed.

Moreover, she stated that the ASEAN-China partnership has continued to grow and provide mutual benefits for more than three decades.

Last year, ASEAN-China trade figures reached almost 20 percent of the total ASEAN trade and one-third of the total investment entering Southeast Asia.

Based on the "Southeast Asia Survey Report" from ISEAS Yusof Ishak in 2024, the minister drew attention to the Southeast Asian people's perception of China as the most influential economic partner and a strategic political force in the region.

Last year, China expressed its support for the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP), including by committing to 25 concrete projects worth US$28.75 billion, which was announced at the ASEAN Indo-Pacific Forum under Indonesia's chairmanship.

"ASEAN is ready to continue working with China to ensure the realization of these concrete projects and develop other collaborations in the four priority pillars of the AOIP," Marsudi remarked.

The ASEAN-China PMC meeting adopted a joint statement on intensifying cooperation on humanitarian mine action.

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Translator: Yashinta Difa, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Arie Novarina
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