Wen made the remarks when addressing the 15th China-ASEAN summit, which the Chinese leader co-chaired with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen.
China supports ASEAN’s bid to seek strength in unity, Wen said, adding that China opposes not only hegemony and power politics, but also the idea of regional affairs managed or dominated by big powers.
He called on related parties in East Asia to properly handle their differences and disputes in the spirit of seeking consensus through consultation and accommodating each other’s concerns, so as to preserve the overall situation of cooperation and development in the region.
He asked the ASEAN partners to fend off all kinds of disturbances and push forward the integration process in a comprehensive manner, in a bid to promote a long-term, high-quality development of East Asia.
The China-ASEAN relations have maintained a good momentum of development in the past year and new breakthroughs have been made, laying a solid foundation for further development of their relations, Wen said.
The two sides should make more efforts in the construction of a free trade zone and enhance cooperation in science and technology, push forward the connectivity projects and increase social and cultural exchanges, Wen said.
China and ASEAN have worked together in the past 20 years in overcoming various challenges and succeeded in safeguarding regional peace and stability, Wen said.
However, the global and regional situation has undergone complicated changes due to the ongoing global financial crisis, which brings not only new opportunities for development but also uncertainties, Wen said.
He urged ASEAN members to focus on common interests, stay in the right direction and make concerted efforts to revitalize East Asia.
