By HE Yafei
Senior Advisor of the Institute for Global Cooperation and Understanding(iGCU), PKU
Former Vice Foreign Minister
Deputy Director of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council
HE Yafei, China’s former Vice Foreign Minister and member of the International Advisory Board of the Chahar Institute, attended a special video conference at the World Peace Forum on June 17, 2020. He mentioned during the conference that the COVID-19 has accelerated regional changes and conflicts, leaving the Asia-Pacific region with issues of regional economic integration, rebalancing of power, military confrontation, and fragility of governance frameworks. The current regional conflicts are rooted in ideology. Countries should set aside their differences and restart dialogues and negotiations.
HE Yafei made four of his observations: First, after the epidemic, military conflicts and confrontations may emerge between regional powers, so it is important to prevent any military confrontation that may arise from possible deterioration of relations between major powers. Second, as we are facing a cross-border epidemic, it is imperative for us to establish a regional governance framework to deal with non-traditional security threats. Third, since the supply and industrial chains of the global economy are ravaged, regional collective efforts are much better than fighting alone; if we cannot recover the global supply chain, a regional one shall be built first. Fourth, crises and dangers may arise in the clash between different cultural ideologies, especially in the Sino-U.S. relations, which may lead to unfavorable outcomes.
HE Yafei suggested that India, Japan and ASEAN can contribute to meaningful dialogues between China and the U.S., in which they can participate to make the communication more successful. China needs to pay more attention to its relations with neighboring countries and develop a “Tailored Policy for Each Country” approach to achieve long-term prosperity and stability.
Note：The Chinese version of this article has been published by The Paper on June 25, 2020.
Link：https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_7995960
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