On May 17, 2023, the Belt and Road Forum for Interconnected Land-Sea Development opened in Chongqing. Vice President and Member of the Party Committee of Guangxi University, Prof. Dr.Fan Zuojun, delivered the keynote speech at the plenary session.

The theme of this year is Creating a New Future of Land-Sea Coordinated Development, aiming to provide a platform for dialogue and exchange for all parties to strengthen connectivity and deepen practical cooperation. It seeks to promote the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, ensuring steady, high-quality, and substantial development. Yuan Jiajun, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Secretary of the CPC Chongqing Municipal Committee, Sonthong Inthavong, Member of the Secretariat of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party and Vice Chairman of National Assembly, Agung Laksono, Chairman of Golkar and former Speaker of the People's Representative Council, and Guo Yezhou, Deputy Head of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee, attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches.

During his speech, Fan Zuojun shared insights on China-ASEAN cooperation under the new development pattern in the future. He expressed that the new development philosophy is shaping China-ASEAN relations, particularly in terms of economic, political, and cultural aspects of the China-ASEAN relationship. China and ASEAN countries should strive to expand consensus, jointly address challenges, and seize the opportunities presented by global industrial transformation. Also, they should focus on new technologies and industries, fully leverage the advantages of industrial complementarity, and broaden new horizons for bilateral economic cooperation.

“We must construct a new development pattern for China-ASEAN economic cooperation. At the institutional level, we should continue deepening the China-ASEAN relationship within the mechanism of multiple overlapping free trade areas in the future.” Fan Zuojun emphasized the need to strengthen investment attraction and industrial cooperation with Southeast Asia at the economic level. Meanwhile, it is crucial to effectively address governance, peace, development, and trust deficits in China-ASEAN relations.

During this forum, the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor(ILSTC) Think Tank Alliance was officially established, and our university's China-ASEAN Information Harbor Institute of Big Data Research is one of the founding member institutions. The ILSTC Think Tank Alliance will bring together diverse think tanks, focusing on accelerating the construction of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor. Its work will revolve around policy interpretation, strategic analysis, decision-making support, project evaluation, and other areas, aiming to serve the high-quality development of the countries along the Corridor.

The 2023 Belt and Road Forum for Interconnected Land-Sea Development is jointly organized by the Belt and Road Initiative Think Tank Cooperation Alliance and the Chongqing Municipal People's Government. It is co-hosted by the China Center for Contemporary World Studies of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee and Chongqing Municipal Foreign Affairs Office.