Facing growing global challenges, China, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have pioneered a new approach to cross-regional collaboration.
In a significant and historic development, they held a groundbreaking trilateral summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the current chair of ASEAN, signaling a collective commitment to resilience, economic partnership, and a shared goal of prosperity.
At the first-ever ASEAN-China-GCC Summit on Tuesday, Chinese Premier Li Qiang urged the three parties to become a global example in openness, cooperative development, and cultural integration.
Li’s appeal comes at a crucial moment when rising protectionism and geopolitical tensions threaten to disrupt the global order.
Amid economic uncertainties worldwide, Li emphasized that stronger connectivity and cooperation among the three sides can create a vibrant economic hub and growth engine, benefiting not only their own prosperity but also fostering peace and development across Asia and beyond.
Lee Pei May, a political analyst at the International Islamic University Malaysia, praised the summit as an effective response to the growing trends of protectionism and isolationism worldwide.
Lee added that the summit demonstrates how economies can complement each other instead of competing, alleviating fears that development requires inward focus.
During the meeting, Li encouraged all parties to collaborate on building a global cooperation model based on three pillars: cross-regional openness, cooperation despite differing development stages, and cross-civilization integration.
The leaders agreed to enhance Belt and Road cooperation, focusing on stronger ties in connectivity, trade, industrial and supply chains, agriculture, energy, finance, and the digital economy. They pledged to promote robust, inclusive, and sustainable trilateral development.
The summit concluded with the adoption of a joint statement, which Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim praised as comprehensive and a powerful testament to trilateral unity and collaboration.
The joint statement highlighted shared efforts to deepen cooperation between ASEAN, GCC, and China, reflecting China’s vision of building closer ASEAN-China and China-Arab communities with a shared future.
Andrew Kam Jia Yi, senior fellow at the National University of Malaysia, noted that the summit underscored how the distinct strengths of each party complement each other.
He explained that the GCC’s energy and financial assets, ASEAN’s growing consumer markets, and China’s technological and financial power together enhance supply chain resilience and improve food and energy security for all.
Following the summit, Premier Li addressed the opening of the ASEAN-China-GCC Economic Forum 2025, reaffirming China’s dedication to advancing trilateral cooperation through high-quality development.
He pledged to further open China’s markets at a high level, support the integration of domestic and international economies, and share China’s development opportunities with ASEAN, GCC countries, and global enterprises.
This trilateral cooperation framework not only enables regional collaboration but also provides a fresh platform for Global South countries to coordinate closely on international matters and amplify their global influence.
The joint statement stressed the importance of strengthening trust in the rules-based multilateral trading system, centered on the World Trade Organization, and committed the parties to promoting economic globalization that is open, inclusive, balanced, and beneficial for current and future generations.
On the sidelines of the summit, Premier Li expressed China’s willingness to enhance the Global South’s role in global governance.
In his meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Li emphasized strengthening communication and cooperation to protect the common interests of Global South nations.
The day before the summit, Li met Kuwait’s Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, reaffirming China’s commitment to working with Kuwait through multilateral channels to promote fairer global governance and a more peaceful, stable, and prosperous world.
Andrew Kam highlighted that this trilateral summit inspires other regions to explore similar cooperative frameworks.
He described it as a sign of growing unity, with Global South countries increasingly collaborating to shape their futures, assert their priorities globally, and build a fairer, more stable world order from the grassroots level.
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