Hey there! Did you know that countries can be best friends too? 🌏🤝 Over the past 30 years, China and a group of Southeast Asian countries called ASEAN have teamed up to do amazing things!
What’s ASEAN? 🇹🇭🇸🇬🇻🇳🇲🇾🇮🇩
ASEAN stands for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. It’s a club of countries like Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia. They work together to help each other grow and prosper.
Trading Buddies 🛍️
China and ASEAN countries trade a lot! Imagine swapping toys with your friends, but on a much bigger scale. Each of these countries trades over $100 billion worth of goods with China. That’s a lot of cool stuff!
China has been ASEAN’s biggest trading partner for 15 years, and ASEAN has been China’s biggest trading partner for 4 years. Together, they make up more than one-fifth of the world’s economy. That’s like having a huge piece of the world’s pie! 🥧
Building Together 🏗️🚄
They’ve been building amazing things together too! For example:
- Super Fast Trains 🚅: The China-Laos Railway connects people and places faster than ever, with up to 100,000 passengers a day!
- New Roads 🛣️: The Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville Expressway in Cambodia makes travel quicker and easier, just like opening a shortcut in a game.
- Busy Ports and Airports ✈️🛳️: By working on ports and airports together, goods and people can move around more smoothly.
Rules and Games 🎮📜
They also agreed on rules to make trading easier. Think of it like agreeing on the rules before playing a game so everyone knows how to play fair. They joined something called the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the world’s largest free trade area!
They’re also upgrading their Free Trade Agreement to Version 3.0, which means even better cooperation and more exciting opportunities ahead.
Looking Ahead 🌟
The year 2025 is going to be special! It’s like having a big celebration where everyone looks back at all the good times and plans for the future. China and ASEAN will keep working together to make the world a better place with more jobs, better technology, and greener living. 🌳
Together We Thrive 🤗
By teaming up, China and ASEAN show us the power of friendship and cooperation. They are like superheroes joining forces to help not just themselves but the whole world! Isn’t that awesome?
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
