China and ASEAN remain each other's largest trading partner, with trade reaching $686.78 billion in the first eight months of this year, an increase of 8.6 percent year-on-year. As a result of the Belt and Road Initiative, cooperation has become better structured and increasingly fruitful.

Secretary-General of ASEAN Kao Kim Hourn said the association deeply values and appreciates "China's unwavering support for ASEAN centrality and unity" as evidenced by the country's active participation in ASEAN-led platforms and mechanisms like the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA). He also referenced next month's scheduled signing of the ACFTA 3.0.

While also acknowledging China's support for the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, the ASEAN secretary-general said, "President Xi Jinping's Global Governance Initiative offers a valuable reminder of the importance of shared responsibility, inclusivity and cooperation – principles that resonate closely with ASEAN's own vision for a peaceful and sustainable regional order."

Sarah Al Bakri Devadason, Malaysia's permanent representative to ASEAN, acknowledged the inspiration provided by China and its meaningful contribution to global peace, development and prosperity.

"Built on mutual trust and shared interests, ASEAN-China Dialog Relations, which has spanned over 30 years, remains dynamic and comprehensive based on shared aspirations," she said in her speech.