COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP- THE ASEAN WAY

Tracing the relation between China and ASEAN thirty years ago have had its share of ups and
downs just like ordinary relationships. It can be made into a telenovela consisting of
unpredictable plots which will leave anyone guessing. Admittedly, the surprise endings or
unravelling of conflicts make the story more interesting. In 1997, China was just a part of the
Plus Three (+3) of ASEAN, together with Japan and South Korea, the primary objective was to
strengthen the economic ties. Together with two powerful nations, China became inspired
especially when it became an active member of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India. China and South
Africa) since 2009 which fostered economic cooperation.

The involvement of China economically can be compared to a roller-coaster ride. A factor

could be because of culture embraced by China which became a mixture of traditions and trends
paving the way for circumspect behaviour in making economic decisions. Comparing to Japan,
the Chinese did not make money through technology neither did it start with nuclear weapons
and dealings like with South Korea. It was indeed a hard climb to success amidst the many
legalities involved such as counterfeiting, drugs, piracy and mass production of goods. Still,
China soars high continuously even after the many wars and disastrous effects it had experienced
throughout the centuries.

With the emergence of open regionalism, had inspired China to get out and form bilateral and
multilateral ties with several countries which basically is out of its region. . China had opened
doors to Australia, France and other powerful states. But who can forget ASEAN? The 10-state
organization which has been existing since 1965 had continued to shine and soar with strong ties
globally amidst the issues, dilemmas and concerns surrounding each state, still the ties remained
stronger especially during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

China did not forget about this, with South China Sea as one of the prevailing issues that need
to be settled. It was not contented on just being a Plus 3 but rather has to renew and strengthen
the economic ties since 2003 with the Free Trade Agreement as just one of the strategies but now
has to be done explicitly through the ASEAN Vision of 2030.
 Inspite of the many internal and external struggles present in every ASEAN state, it has
shown resiliency and ferocity to continue the battle with the tagline – the ASEAN Way which is
for the purpose of promoting peace and cooperation with other regions as well. This had inspired
China to continue its relation with the said organization thus on November 22, 2021, the
Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) of China-ASEAN was born.

Economically, the CSP is beneficial especially to ASEAN wherein out of the ten states, there
are only two developing countries and most are still stratified in second and third worlds
respectively. Though at a first glance, the South China Sea can be a sweetener to a deal and more
of a bargaining chip in the process but blaming it on the deep cultural roots of China, it does not
want to wage war on anyone but rather can be done in a peaceful way. But as Sun Tzu in his
novel cited , Keep your friends close but keep your enemies closer. We cannot really predict
what China is really up to, the simplest reason can be to keep the West particularly the United
States at bay. China has been smart enough to take advantage of majority of the ASEAN states
which are on the brink of bankruptcy, civil wars, political unrest and discrimination and in which
China for most of its experiences in the past had been a survivor in these areas. Perhaps, there is
neighbourliness, a matter of trust and diplomacy or preservation of an ethnocentric culture; there
can be thousands of reasons for this CSP. What looks clear enough is that the alliance system
made by China is different from that of the United States since the former is more on
cultivating political relationships and economic cooperation than that of treaty-based,
threat driven and security-centric strategies of the United States, and if things become
perfect can open the big door towards global relations which supersedes the Power Basis
Theory argues that the ontological necessity of power arises from the requirements humans
have for survival (their basic needs). Power motivations are what encourage action to meet
those needs and are prompted by the psychological apparatus humans have for detecting
those needs (sensibilities), had taken selflessness, compassion as part of the equation for
domination which as compared before had been more on the ruthless tactics such as war,
colonization, invasion.
 Labelling is just a word no matter what the objectives are as China tends to amplify only the
positive elements such as economic cooperation, digital and green technologies, connectivity
but we cannot also erase the fact of the South China Sea and other maritime disputes.
These can be rewards and challenges at the same time.

The promise of President Xi Jinping of a US$1.5 billion in development assistance to

ASEAN in the next three years to promote economic recovery from the pandemic. A promise to
buy US$150 billion worth of agriculture products from ASEAN over the next five years was also
made. These are all sweeteners to a bitter coffee taste.

Alluding to some negative impacts about the CSP aside from the South China Sea issue are
the taking sides of ASEAN especially with regards to its transactions with the United States,
being neutral in the on-going Russia-Ukraine war has been a big step as both countries benefit
the ASEAN members economically and most of the member-states have numerous things on
their plate at present such as the dwindling economy, the loan sharks, the unstable fiscal policies
and the inflation experienced. Perhaps in a way, the CSP will be a big help but then there is still
no final word to this. As President Xi stated from a Chinese proverb-- "Distance tests a horse's
strength, and time reveals a person's integrity,"
BIBLIOGRAPHY:

www.asean.org

https://www.iseas.edu.sg/

https://asialink.unimelb.edu.au/

https://research.hktdc.com/

http://en.qstheory.cn/

https://www.khmertimeskh.com/

https://www.globaltimes.cn/

https://www.chinausfocus.com/