2022 GMCOG boost China-ASEAN maritime cooperation

SANYA,China,Nov. 11,2022 -- OnNovember 3-4,2022,the "2022 Ocean Cooperation and Governance Forum",co-organized by National Institute for South China Sea Studies,kicked off in Sanya,Hainan. China'smaritime cooperation with ASEAN countries has evolved from the initial exploration in the 1990s to the present,with increasingly richer areas of cooperation and more diverse forms of cooperation. Addressing climate change,marine resource management and utilization,planning and establishment of marine parks/protected areas,marine disaster prevention and mitigation,and protection of endangered marine species are the important contents of the work of marine cooperation betweenChinaand ASEAN countries.

The Symposium on Global Maritime Cooperation and Ocean Governance 2022 Successfully Concluded in Sanya

In this regard,China-ASEAN countries have been exploring and establishing various long-term cooperation mechanisms in recent years. For example,Chinahas established the "China-ASEAN Maritime Cooperation Fund" and "China-Indonesia Maritime Cooperation Fund" to actively support various maritime cooperation projects betweenChinaand ASEAN countries; China The establishment of the Joint Research and Development Center for Marine Science and Technology of ASEAN countries has provided an important platform for strengthening cooperation in marine-related science and technology innovation and talent training between the two sides.

In terms of practical cooperation,Chinaand ASEAN countries have actively implemented the Leaders' Declaration on Coastal and Marine Environmental Protection in the South China Sea for the Next Decade (2017-2027) and cooperated in the "Marine Plastic Reduction Initiative","Mangrove Protection Plan" and other marine ecological restoration projects. "They also actively participate in regional fisheries management organizations,implement "zero tolerance" for illegal fishing,and actively study joining the Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent,Deter and Eliminate Illegal,Unreported and Unregulated Fishing.

For the forum's venue,Hainanis a typical island economy,the sea is an important carrier ofHainan'seconomic and social development. 2021,Hainan'sgross marine economy reached198.96 billion yuan,accounting for 30.7% ofHainan'sGDP. Many believes thatHainanas the "21st Century Maritime Silk Road" an important strategic pivot point,"deepen external contacts and cooperation,strengthen cooperation with Southeast Asian countries in the field of marine tourism,marine environmental protection,marine fisheries,marine search and rescue,isHainanto explore a high level of opening up to the outside world,the construction of free trade The important content of the free trade port.