The third Intersessional Ministerial Meeting of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) was held on Monday in Vietnam's capital Hanoi.
The meeting was attended by 16 economic and trade ministers from the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its six partners including China, Australia, India, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, as well as representatives of relevant international organizations.
At the meeting, participants discussed issues such as goods, services, investments and rules in RCEP negotiations, providing guidance for the next step in the negotiations.
In his speech at the meeting, Chinese Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan said that China had put forward the spirit of "peaceful cooperation, open tolerance, mutual learning, mutual benefit and win-win" in the recently-held Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation.
China had emphasized the need to promote the construction of justice, reasonable and transparent international economic and trade investment rule system, the construction of free trade areas and the community of common destiny, said Zhong, adding RCEP is committed to a modern, comprehensive, high-quality, mutually beneficial free trade agreement (FTA), which is highly aligned with the Silk Road spirit.
The Chinese minister pointed out that countries that are engaged in RCEP negotiations are currently the most dynamic economies worldwide, covering the largest population.
In order to speed up the negotiation process, the Chinese side put forward three proposals: to support ASEAN-led efforts to expand the consensus, to seize the opportunity to end the negotiations as soon as possible and to take into account the demands of all parties during the pragmatic negotiations, said Zhong.
Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh, for his part, said at the meeting that the common goal of the regional economies is to build an Asia-Pacific FTA with connectivity.
Representatives at the meeting agreed that the construction of a comprehensive, multi-level connectivity mechanism fully reflects the active development of the region.
They also stressed the need for effective coordination between the various mechanisms so that the regional interconnection for the people and enterprises can bring more tangible benefits.
