On November 12th, the 6th China - ASEAN Legal Cooperation Forum (“Forum”) was held in Chongqing. The Forum  was established by Chongqing Municipality for the co-construction of the “Belt and Road”, the construction of the new western land-sea corridor  and other major strategic plans. Furthermore, the Forum held the objective of promoting the rule of law in foreign countries and communicating with the ASEAN countries’ law, jurisprudence and practice. The Forum, themed “Promoting China-ASEAN Rule of Law Exchanges and Cooperation”, was organized by China Law Society  as the guiding unit, Southwest University of Political Science and Law,  Chongqing Law Society,  China Legal Exchange Center,  Chongqing Municipal Justice Bureau,  Chongqing Municipal Commerce Commission,  and hosted by China-ASEAN Legal Research Center.  Li Mingqing, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Chongqing Municipal Committee,  Wang Hongxiang, Secretary of the Party Group of the China Law Society, Member of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress and Vice Chairman of the Constitution and Law Committee,  Lin Wei, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and President of SWUPL,  Guo Mingcong, Level II Bureau Rank Official  of the International Cooperation Department  of the Supreme People's Procuratorate of the PRC, Kheang Seng, Vice President of the Anti-Corruption Unit of the Kingdom of Cambodia,  Somvanh Saiylongpha, Deputy Minister of Ministry of Public Security of Laos,  Honourable I Gusti Agung Sumanatha, Head of the Civil Chamber of the Indonesian Supreme Court,  Kalyan Shrestha, Former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nepal,  attended the forum and delivered speeches, and Yu Ning, Level II Bureau Rank Official of the Department of Treaty and Law of the Ministry of Commerce of the PRC,  delivered a video message.  Zhang Xiaojun, Member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee of Southwest University of Political Science and Law and Vice President of the University, China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) Arbitrator, presided over the opening ceremony. More than 200 honored guests from China and ASEAN countries’ related government departments, legal organizations and business representatives gathered to discuss the new path of regional rule of law cooperation.

(Forum site)

Wang Chengjie, Vice Chairman and Secretary General of CIETAC, was invited to deliver a keynote speech on the topic of “Deepening Cooperation on the Rule of Law in Arbitration and Serving the High-quality Development of China-ASEAN Economic and Trade Cooperation”. Other keynote speakers included CHIN MALIN, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Justice,  Amphay Chitmanonh, Vice Chairman of the Law Committee of the Lao National Assembly,  Zaw Min Aung, Director General of the Department of Treaty and Law of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Myanmar,  and Colin Ong, President of Arbitration Association Brunei.

Wang Chengjie pointed out that cooperation between China andASEAN in various fields has achieved fruitful results, with economic and trade exchanges becoming increasingly close. China has been ASEAN's largest trading partner for 15 consecutive years, ASEAN has been China's largest trading partner for 4consecutive years, and ASEAN has also become an important part of the strategy of “Belt and Road”. The rule of law is the foundation project for deepening China-ASEAN’s economic and trade cooperation, and the cooperation of rule of law is the realistic call for  deepening the strategy of “Belt and Road”. Furthermore, high-level arbitration services should continue to play an important role in promoting China-ASEAN’s economic and trade cooperation, as well as serving the high-quality development of the co-construction of the “Belt and Road”. Data shows that since 2019, CIETAC has accepted nearly 300 cases involving ASEAN parties that covering ten countries of ASEAN, with the disputed amount exceeding RMB10 billion. Meanwhile, since the initiative of “Belt and Road” in 2013, the CIETAC has accepted 3,172 cases involving with the “Belt and Road” in total, with the disputed amount exceeding RMB191.6 billion, and the cases has covered all countries of “Belt and Road” for the first time in 2023. 

Secretary General Wang Chengjie putthat, cooperation in rule of law is an important part of China-ASEAN’s cooperation. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen institutional coordination, realize connectivity in rules and build a stable, fair, win-win and shared institutional framework. It is also necessary to utilize  efficiently the existing mechanisms to develop dispute resolution mechanisms that meet the needs of common development. Furthermore, it is required to establish a diversified dispute resolution mechanism that effectively links litigation, arbitration and mediation. To fully leverage the potential of international arbitration as a bridge and link, and to drive the high-quality growth of China-ASEAN economic and trade collaboration, it is necessary to deepen the exchanges on the rule of law, promote mutual trust in law, and engage with ASEAN dispute resolution institutions at multiple levels, through diverse channels, and in a comprehensive manner. 

 (Keynote speech by Wang Chengjie, Secretary General)

In order to implement the spirits of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important instructions on promoting the development of China's western region in the new era,  as well as the strategic plan of the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle,  the New Western Land-Sea Corridor,  and the high-quality development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt,  Secretary General Wang Chengjie, on behalf of the  CIETAC, signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MOU) with the Chongqing Municipal Bureau of Justice (CQMJ) in a sub-forum named the “International Commercial Arbitration Forum for New Western Land-Sea Corridor”. The MOU is aiming at jointly strengthening of the institutionalized cooperation between the two sides, and to serve the building of the inland openness hub and to participate in the construction of the international commercial arbitration center for Southeast Asia.