Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing has urged Asia-Pacific countries to hold steadfast to the goal of common security, enhance mutual trust by respecting each other, safeguard their security through dialogue and consultation, and achieve lasting peace by cooperating in good faith.

In a speech read out on Friday by his representative Liu Yongxing, Chinese Ambassador to Laos, at the 12th ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Ministerial Meeting here, Li said the past year saw overall stability of the security situation in the Asia-Pacific region.

He said that countries in the region have voiced a stronger aspiration for peace, development and cooperation. Their economies continue to grow, their common interests have expanded and interdependence deepened. Multilateral dialogue and cooperation on security matters, as represented by the ARF, are gaining in vitality. To maintain a peaceful, stable and secure development environment has become a shared view of the region.

However, Li said, security in the Asia-Pacific region still faces many challenges. Regional hotspot issues remain pronounced. Terrorism, extremism and separatism pose a threat to regional peace and stability. Smuggling, drug trafficking, pirating, money laundering and other transnational crimes are running rampant. Problems such as eco-degradation, natural disasters and communicable diseases are all impeding Asia's development and prosperity.

Given such a new security situation in the Asia-Pacific, Li maintained that the ARF should give adequate attention to the following aspects in its future development.

Firstly, Mutual trust needs to be enhanced. Li said mutual trust is the very basis and prerequisite for ARF cooperation. Currently, countries in Asia and the Pacific have their own understandings and concerns on the security issue and hold different views as to how to deepen security cooperation.

"We should continue to take the ARF as the primary platform for regional security cooperation, and consolidate and strengthen confidence-building measures (CBMs) throughout the entire evolution of the forum," Li said.

Secondly, diversity should be respected. He said Asia-Pacific countries are different in terms of social system, cultural background and development level. The ARF has, since its inception and out of respect for such diversity, gradually developed some experience and principles of cooperation such as consensus through consultation, gradual progress and proceeding at a pace comfortable to all. These characteristics need to be further promoted as they conform to the reality in the region.

Thirdly, a proper relationship should be maintained between the ARF and other mechanisms. Li said coexistence of a variety of security dialogues and cooperation mechanisms in the Asia-Pacific region is a natural reflection of this region's diversity. It is advisable for the ARF to keep the characteristics and advantages of its own while handling properly its relations with other mechanisms. The good way is to strengthen exchanges and contacts with other mechanisms and reinforce each other by tapping fully their respective advantages so as to jointly safeguard peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.

Fourthly, vitality should be sustained to facilitate the continuous development of the forum. Faced with new opportunities and challenges, Li said the forum should conform to the changing situation and play a greater role in promoting regional security cooperation.

Li said China hopes to see cooperation within the forum further substantiated. More cooperation should be conducted in the areas of counter-terrorism and combating transnational crimes, with increased involvement of national defense officials.

He said the Chinese side stands ready to work with other parties for a healthier development of the Security Policy Conference. China supports the resumption of the Inter-sessional Meeting (ISM) on Disaster Relief and is willing to co-host its first session together with Indonesia.

Last year, China hosted the first Security Policy Conference and two workshops on alternative development and on enhancing cooperation in the field of non-traditional security issues. Next year, China will co-host with Brunei the ISM on Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime, and with the US and Singapore the Seminar on Non-Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction.

Li said China supports enhancing ARF's efficiency. The role of the ARF Chair should be increased while maintaining the primary role of the ASEAN, and dialogue and coordination among ARF participants should be strengthened for the benefit of higher efficiency and quality.

Li also told delegates that China supports the establishment of the ARF Fund and will think positively on making donations to the fund. "It is hoped that the Experts and Eminent Persons (EEP) can play a constructive role by providing their ideas on the development of the forum," he added.

On China's policy of "building good neighborliness and partnership with surrounding countries", Li said China is committed to strengthening dialogue and cooperation on regional security.

He noted that China enjoys rapid economic growth, but the per capita level is still low and its social and economic development unbalanced. There remain outstanding problems in China's development. "Our desire to focus on development calls for a long- term and stable regional security environment," he said.

Li emphasized that against the backdrop of economic globalization, China must work to forge friendship and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation with its neighbors and the rest of the world in order to create a most favorable external environment for its own development.

He pointed out that development of China is impossible without Asia and the world. "It is our unchanging strategic choice to achieve a win-win result through cooperation. We are ready to make joint efforts with ARF members to strengthen security dialogue and cooperation in a bid to make our due contributions to the peace and prosperity of this region," Li said.

Source: Xinhua