A meeting of ASEAN-China Senior Officials’ Consultation Meeting took place in the central city of Hue on April 27, with the participation of assistant foreign ministers from the ten ASEAN countries and China.

Vietnamese Assistant Foreign Minister Pham Quang Vinh and Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hu Zhengyue co-chaired the meeting which included the participation of the ASEAN Deputy General Secretary.

The meeting reviewed the development of the ASEAN-China relationship over the past year, especially the strengthening of cooperation in coping with the financial crisis and climate change as well as in sustainable development.

The two sides briefed each other on their efforts to strengthen ASEAN connectivity and address issues of common concern such as trans-national crime, economic development, disease prevention and regional security.

The Chinese side expressed its strong support for the ASEAN community and regional links in strengthening infrastructure construction and narrowing the development gap.

The two sides also discussed activities to mark the 20th anniversary of establishment of the ASEAN-China Partnership (1991-2011), the building of a 2011-2015 cooperative programme and preparations for the upcoming ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and ASEAN-China Summit.

In 2009, two-way trade between ASEAN and China reached 200 billion USD, representing an average annual growth of 26 percent.

China is now ASEAN’s third largest trade partner after Japan and the EU while ASEAN is the fourth largest trade partner of China .

Since 2006, 251 projects and activities have been implemented under the framework of cooperative programmes between ASEAN and China./.