The People’s Republic of China established diplomatic ties with the Republic of Korea on Aug 24, 1992, opening a new chapter in bilateral ties. The two countries have since witnessed rapid development of their relations, enhanced political mutual trust, deepening economic integration and booming people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

Since the establishment of diplomatic ties, bilateral relations have seen a “triple-jump” leading to the establishment of a strategic cooperative partnership, which means becoming partners for common development, regional peace, and making joint efforts to revitalize Asia and promote global prosperity. The two sides have closely communicated and coordinated on international and regional issues and played a constructive role in safeguarding international fairness and justice. Their friendship not only brings tangible benefits to both sides, but also contributes positive energy to the region and the world.

The two countries are good partners with common interests and pursue the shared goals of mutual benefits and win-win results. China is the ROK’s biggest trading partner and largest overseas investment destination, while the ROK is an important economic and trade partner for China. The annual volume of bilateral trade has reached around US$300 billion during the past three years, and the personnel exchanges between the two countries exceed 10 million a year. Both sides are also each other’s top source of overseas students. 

The two countries have kept in mind the original intention of establishing diplomatic relations for the well-being of the people, adhered to the principle of treating each other with sincerity and mutual benefit and win-win results, so as to continuously deepen the development of bilateral relations.

In addition, China and the ROK are good friends that are standing together to combat difficulties. Following the sudden outbreak of the novel coronavirus, the people of the two countries have supported each other and stood together against the virus, demonstrating their friendship in these testing times. The two countries took the lead in setting up a cooperation mechanism featuring joint efforts in prevention and control of the virus and introduced a green channel for important and urgent personnel, becoming the first countries to ease the restrictions on personnel exchanges. Their anti-pandemic cooperation has not only set an example for the global community, but also injected great confidence and strength into the virus-affected world economy.

Deepening the development of their strategic cooperative partnership and strengthening friendly cooperation are the main theme of China-ROK relations. In the future, China and the ROK should play their roles as neighbors, partners and friends, and strive to achieve the following three objectives.

First, as global problems are emerging endlessly nowadays, both sides should remain firm in their belief that no matter how the situation changes, building a community with a shared future is the only correct direction for the development and progress of human society. Faced with rising power politics and isolationism, China and the ROK should continue their coordination and cooperation in multilateral mechanisms such as the United Nations, respect each other’s core interests and major concerns, and continue to maintain regional peace and stability.

Second, China and the ROK should know that respect for diversity is an integral part of the beauty and prosperity of the world. The two countries should continue to strengthen their unity and cooperation, firmly support multilateralism and free trade. They should further promote the Belt and Road Initiative to link up with the New Southern Policy that aims to elevate the ROK’s strategic ties with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and India, in the process cooperating with other major economies.

The two countries should also strengthen cooperation with Japan, and the three countries should promote the signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement as soon as possible. That will further stabilize industrial supply chains and make positive contributions to the world economic recovery.

Third, China and the ROK should make continuous efforts to realize greater success. As President Xi Jinping has said, the friendship between the peoples of China and the ROK has grown even deeper, and bilateral exchanges and cooperation have flourished during the fight against the pandemic. China is willing to take the 28th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties as an opportunity to “ride the wind and plow the waves” with the ROK, so as to build a community of shared interests, responsibility and future of the two countries and open up a magnificent chapter of China-ROK friendship in the new era.

The author is the Chinese ambassador to the Republic of Korea. The author contributed this article to China Watch, a think tank powered by China Daily. 

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.