On 15 November 2021, H.E. Urawadee Sriphiromya, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Thailand to ASEAN, and Mr. Kittisak Klomchit, Minister and Deputy Permanent Representative of Thailand to ASEAN, attended the Reception in Celebration of the 30^th Anniversary of ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations co-hosted by the Permanent Mission of Myanmar to ASEAN and the Chinese Mission to ASEAN at the Shangri-la Hotel in Jakarta. Also in attendance were the Secretary-General of ASEAN, Permanent Representatives of ASEAN Member States, Ambassadors and representatives of ASEAN’s external partners, as well as members of the academic community and the media.

The reception included the launching of a commemorative photo exhibition, the delivery of remarks by the Permanent Representative of Myanmar to ASEAN, as Country Coordinator for ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations, Ambassador of China to ASEAN, the Secretary-General of ASEAN and a representative from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, as well as a cake-cutting ceremony to commemorate the three decades of fruitful relations between ASEAN and China.

China established official relations with ASEAN in 1991 and later became a full Dialogue Partner of ASEAN in 1996. Over the years, ASEAN and China have enjoyed extensive cooperation in all
the three community pillars. Key areas of cooperation include the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, connectivity, sustainable development where 2021-2022 have been designated as ASEAN-China Years of Sustainable Development Cooperation, as well as people-to-people exchanges through the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship (ACYLS) programme. The 24^th ASEAN-China Summit on 26 October 2021 agreed to establish a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between ASEAN and China that is meaningful, substantive, and mutually beneficial.

(Photos Courtesy of the ASEAN Secretariat)