KUALA LUMPUR, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- Disruptive actions aimed at stunting multilateralism, free and open trade must not be allowed to derail efforts to advance global cooperation and integration, participants at a forum here have said.
Countries would do well to fully utilize various mechanisms to ensure stable trade, such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and regional groupings like the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Belt and Road Initiative Caucus for Asia-Pacific (BRICAP) President Ong Tee Keat said at the BRICAP Seminar 2025.
"If RCEP is to serve as a shield against uncertainty and a bridge toward resilience, we must now move from rhetoric to implementation. Strengthening the RCEP framework is not merely an economic imperative, it is a strategic priority," he added.
Chinese Embassy Minister Zheng Xuefang said that unilateralism and protectionism have posed significant risks and challenges to the region's economic and trade development. Regional countries must stand more united and self-reliant, draw on each other's strengths, uphold legitimate rights and interests, and promote steady and sound regional economic growth.
Associate Professor Roy Anthony Rogers of the Department of International and Strategic Studies at Universiti Malaya and Lili Yan Ing, a lead advisor at the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia, suggested diversification as an effective strategy to counter disruptions to global trade.
ASEAN-China Center Secretary-General Shi Zhongjun said that China-ASEAN relations will grow as a model of trade, friendship and cooperation, and as a valuable anchor of stability for the global economy.
He said RCEP serves as a "ballast" for regional economic stability and a vital buffer against external protectionist pressures amid growing fragmentation in global trade governance. ■
