H.E. Mr. Hu Jintao (third from right), former Vice President of the People's Republic of China, attending the 2^nd Informal ASEAN Plus Three Summit held in Hanoi, Viet Nam on 16 December 1998.

Mr. Chairman,

Towards the end of last year, an important page was turned over in the annals of China-ASEAN relations. Chinese President Jiang Zemin and leaders of the nine ASEAN countries held their first summit, during which the two sides agreed to establish a partnership of good-neighborliness and mutual trust oriented towards the 21st century and issued a Joint Statement to this end.

Today a year after, the Chinese and ASEAN leaders meet again, gratified by the new progress achieved in bilateral relations and fully confident about their greater development.

In line with the orientation, principles and fields of cooperation set out in the Joint Statement, we have maintained high-level friendly exchanges and enhanced mutual understanding and friendship. We have given priority to economic cooperation and trade and expanded mutually-beneficial cooperation in various fields through diversified and flexible means. We have pulled together in times of trouble and supported one another in actively meeting the challenges posed by the financial crisis. Confident in the bright prospects of Asia's revitalization, we have persisted in readjusting the reform in the light of the actual national conditions and worked for the establishment of a just and reasonable international economic and financial order. We have set store by the overall interests of good-neighborliness and friendship, stood for settlement of differences through peaceful means and helped safeguard regional peace and stability. On the basis of the approach of equal participation, seeking common ground while shelving differences, consensus and incremental progress, we have promoted the sound development of multilateral dialogue and cooperation in the region.

The facts further prove that China and the ASEAN countries share extensive interests, and our relations are based on a solid foundation. Whatever changes may take place, or however tough the development process may be, we shall always share weal and woe.

We are happy about our current record of friendly cooperation and yet not content with it. As the Asian financial crisis is still deepening, we feel all the more keenly the severity of the challenges and the urgency of the task to strengthen our cooperation.

As important forces making for peace and development, China and the ASEAN countries need to close their ranks even more intensely and make due contribution to Asia's revitalization and development by overcoming the temporary difficulties. To this end, China will continue its efforts in the following aspects:

1. Maintain friendly exchanges with ASEAN countries at all levels, in all fields and through different channels within the framework of all-round dialogue and cooperation, so as to enhance good-neighborliness, mutual trust and friendship.

2. Persist in giving priority to economic cooperation and trade and open up diversified channels for cooperation while drawing on each other's advantages for mutual benefit and reciprocity. Conduct exchanges and cooperation between non-governmental agencies and businesses while deepening the inter-governmental cooperation in the economic field and trade, investment, science-technology and other areas. Expand the scope of bilateral economic contacts and trade and investment, and at the same time explore ways of exchange and cooperation at such regional or subregional levels as the AFTA, AIA, and the Mekong Basin Development.

3. Step up cooperation in regional economic and financial fields. To stabilize the regional economic situation and take precautions against financial risks are where our common interests lie. China will persevere in its reform and opening-up, maintain a sustained, rapid and sound development of its economy, keep a stable exchange rate of the RMB yuan, and continue to provide what assistance it could to the ASEAN countries concerned. The Chinese Government has decided to contribute US$ 200,000 to the ASEAN Foundation to support the ASEAN countries in their efforts to promote economic and social development. China is also ready to actively explore and conduct cooperation with these countries in the financial area so as to make joint contribution to the international financial reform.

4. Proceeding from the overall interests of regional peace and stability, China will strictly abide by the political consensus reached with ASEAN, continue to maintain the favorable atmosphere and momentum of dialogue and cooperation, and persist in the settlement of the existing differences and disputes through friendly consultation on an equal footing.

In a word, it is an important component of China's foreign policy and a set national policy of the Chinese Government to consolidate and develop its partnership of good-neighborliness and mutual trust with the ASEAN countries.

As a close neighbor of ASEAN countries, the Chinese people have seen with admiration that in face of the serious impact of the financial crisis, ASEAN and its member states have closed ranks for self-improvement, responded calmly and made unremitting efforts to stabilize the situation and recover the economy. The recently-conducted Sixth ASEAN Summit is another expression of the strong resolve of ASEAN countries to forge ahead against difficulties and conduct readjustment and transformation so as to bring about sustained development and prosperity. We'd like to offer our warm congratulations on the positive results achieved at the summit meeting and our good wished for ASEAN's smooth implementation of vision 2020.

Like ASEAN countries, China is meeting a severe challenge in its development. Under the leadership of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party with Jiang Zemin at the core, the Chinese Government and people were able to conquer the extraordinary flood rarely seen in history, and will surely succeed in surmounting the severe difficulties brought to us by the Asian financial crisis.

We have every reason to believe that as long as China and ASEAN countries join hands in sincere cooperation, we will certainly be able to write an even more brilliant chapter in the annals of our friendly and good- neighborly relations, and create a still better future for our countries and the entire Asia.