Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry Photo: VCG

China expects that the ASEAN leaders' meetings will focus on the two themes of unity in fighting COVID-19, and jointly safeguarding the overall prosperity and stability in the region, according to the Chinese foreign ministry on Tuesday.

In responding to the questions regarding the agenda for the upcoming meetings of Southeast Asian leaders which is scheduled to take place in Vietnam from November 12 to 15, ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Tuesday that China will deepen its cooperation with ASEAN countries and share its experience in vaccine and treatment technique in a bid to further strengthen regional achievements in fighting the pandemic and enhance the capability of the countries to respond to future public health challenges.

At the invitation of the Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will attend several online meetings from November 12 to 15, including the 23rd China-ASEAN leaders' meeting, the 23rd ASEAN and China, Japan and South Korea leaders' meeting and others.

As the virus continues to spread, the global economy faces increasing uncertainty, and protectionism and unilateralism is on the rise, so ASEAN cooperation is needed to face the challenges. Against this backdrop, China and ASEAN countries have enjoyed stronger ties.

Since the beginning of the year, trade and investment between China and ASEAN countries have grown despite the pandemic. ASEAN has become China's largest trading partner. In the first three quarters of this year, China's investment in ASEAN increased by 76.6 percent, the spokesperson said.

Wang noted that in addition to pandemic prevention, China will continue to work with ASEAN to boost economic recovery in the post-pandemic era by deepening cooperation in areas such as the digital economy, smart city project and working for a smooth and open regional supply chain to create sustainable growth.

China and ASEAN countries should uphold the multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core and sign the regional comprehensive economic partnership agreement as planned, as well as promote regional economic integration and economic globalization, Wang said.