An Expanding Circle of Friends

A Stable Neighborhood

China endeavors to build a harmonious neighborhood. In 2017, ties between China and Japan appeared to thaw. Despite setbacks brought about by a border standoff, China-India relations have stayed on track.

The years 2017 and 2018 respectively mark the 45th anniversary of normalization of China-Japan diplomatic ties and the 40th anniversary of the signing of the Sino-Japanese Treaty of Peace and Friendship, which offer opportunities to improve bilateral ties.

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent a delegation led by Liberal Democratic Party’s Secretary General Toshihiro Nikai to attend the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in May. On the sidelines of the G20 summit in Germany in July, Xi met Abe and expressed the hope for Japan to prove its willingness for better ties with China through concrete policies and actions. For his part, Abe said his country is ready to add momentum to improve its ties with China. Abe’s attendance at the ceremony marking China’s National Day at the Chinese embassy in Tokyo on September 28 in a sense reflected Japan’s desire for fostering better bilateral ties. However, as Abe has been reelected as prime minister, it is hard to forecast the future of China-Japan relationships.

The summer of 2017 saw a setback in Sino-India relations due to the 71-day standoff between their armies in China’s Donglang area. It has not only reflected that bilateral ties have been souring in recent years, but also displayed that the Indian government is playing hardball with China.

While meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Xiamen in September, Xi stressed that both countries should understand that they present development opportunities rather than threats for the other. He hoped India will maintain a proper and reasonable attitude toward China’s development. Modi agreed that the two sides should not regard each other as opponents, but make cooperation the centerpiece of bilateral ties. Nevertheless, with India’s general election approaching, a number of issues might cause potential conflicts between the two nations. Therefore, more efforts should be made to properly manage differences and stabilize bilateral relations.

Speaking of the relationship with the Philippines, a turnabout has taken place since President Rodrigo Duterte took office in 2016. More in-depth cooperation has been carried out in 2017.

Furthermore, relations with Singapore have improved again. Singapore usually adopts a balancing diplomacy among big powers, but has shown a tendency of deviating from this policy in recent years. In his commentary published on The Straits Times in July, the Dean of Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore Kishore Mahbubani suggested the country exercise greater discretion when it comes to foreign affairs in the post-Lee Kuan Yew era. Singapore’s adjustment on policy toward China was embodied by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s official visit in September.

It is worth noting that the Belt and Road Initiative has accelerated cooperation between China and its neighbors. A railway to connect Laos’ capital Vientiane with China’s southwestern city Kunming began construction in December 2016. The project is in line with Laos’ strategy to turn itself from a land-locked country to a land-linked one. Besides, the Chinese-invested Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone has grown into the largest of its kind in Cambodia as well as a prime example of China-Cambodia economic collaboration.

In the meantime, projects including Kyaukphyu Deep-sea Port in Myanmar, the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park, Jakarta-Bandung High-speed Railway in Indonesia, Sri Lanka’s Colombo Port City, and Angren-Pap Railway Tunnel of Uzbekistan represent China’s greater cooperation with neighboring countries boosted by the Belt and Road Initiative.

Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) mechanism is another highlight in China’s neighborhood diplomacy. Launched in March 2016 by the leaders from China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam, the mechanism has been developing rapidly, which is lauded as Lancang-Mekong speed and Lancang-Mekong efficiency. Over the past year, a multi-layer cooperation structure including meetings of state leaders, foreign ministers, other senior officials, and working groups has been established. On top of that, a “3+5” cooperation framework has been set up, referring to the three cooperation pillars – political and security issues, economic and sustainable development, cultural and people-to-people exchanges – and the five priority areas for cooperation – connectivity, production capacity, cross-border economic cooperation, water resources, agriculture, and poverty reduction. More than half of the 45 early harvest projects and initiatives agreed upon at the first leaders’ meeting held in March 2016 have been either fulfilled or underway so far. Within the framework, headway has been made for the China-Indochina Peninsula Economic Corridor.

All in all, China’s diplomacy has evolved to be more proactive, enterprising, mature, and confident in the past year. Its major-country diplomacy and policy toward its neighbors are making great contributions toward the realization of the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation and enhancing world peace and development.  

Lin Minwang is an associate professor at the Institute of International Studies of Fudan University.