Recently, Hainan ushered in a forum full of views - at the 2024 Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) Media Think Tank Forum for Regional Development, nearly 300 think tanks, media, enterprises and government representatives from 19 countries and international organizations exchanged ideas and suggestions on topics related to promoting the development and implementation of RCEP.
This forum is a microcosm of China's cooperation with RCEP member countries in building a "think tank network" in recent years. Since 2022, China has formed the RCEP Think Tank Alliance with 13 think tanks from 9 RCEP member countries. The cooperation of relevant think tanks provides continuous intellectual support for all parties to promote the RCEP process, solve practical problems in RCEP, and promote exchanges and cooperation among RCEP members.
As a free trade area with the largest population, the largest economic and trade scale and the greatest development potential in the world, RCEP members include 10 ASEAN countries, Australia, China, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand. RCEP covers not only trade in goods, trade in services and investment, but also economic and technological cooperation, intellectual property rights, e-commerce, etc. In this context, cross regional and cross domain think tank cooperation is indispensable.
Think tanks cooperate and strengthen research. In view of the new problems in the implementation process of RCEP, think tanks carry out forward-looking, policy oriented and applied research, which is conducive to brainstorming and providing advice for promoting the process of RCEP and jointly building the regional market of RCEP. In recent years, at important time nodes such as the first anniversary of RCEP's entry into force and implementation for 10 signatory countries, and the full entry into force of RCEP for 15 signatory countries, several media think tank forums and think tank expert exchanges have been held, and think tank experts from member countries have formed rich discussions on issues such as the implementation of relevant policies of RCEP and deepening economic and trade exchanges and cooperation among member countries. As Rommel Banleyi, Chairman of the Advisory Committee of the China Research Center of the School of International Relations of the New Era University of the Philippines, said at an expert exchange meeting of RCEP think tanks, think tanks play an important role in deepening RCEP economic and trade cooperation. China ASEAN think tanks can expand their networks, enhance existing partnerships, and provide the knowledge, evidence and experience base needed for the smooth implementation of RCEP.
Think tanks cooperate and contribute good strategies. RCEP members include developed countries, developing countries and some least developed countries. There are great differences in economic system, development level and scale among members. How to better take into account the demands of all parties and achieve a balance of interests in ensuring market access and rules such as goods, services and investment is crucial to the implementation of RCEP. At the seminar on deepening China ASEAN economic and trade cooperation under the RCEP framework and the RCEP think tank experts exchange meeting and other exchange meetings held in December 2023, think tank experts from RCEP member countries conducted useful discussions on promoting the sharing of cooperation achievements among RCEP parties around relevant topics, and put forward policy recommendations. For example, Weng Shijie, chairman of Malaysia's Asia Pacific "Belt and Road" Joint Policy Committee, put forward practical suggestions at the meeting, such as giving greater play to the important role of private enterprises in China ASEAN economic and trade cooperation, strengthening scientific and technological cooperation and capacity building. Strengthening exchanges among think tank experts is conducive to drawing more practical and scientific policy recommendations.
Think tank cooperation and consensus building. At the 2024RCEP Regional Development Media Think Tank Forum, the experts at the meeting mentioned a word - "co frequency resonance". As a multilateral trade mechanism with complex and diverse member structure, consensus building and joint efforts in the RCEP region are not only conducive to the industrial chain supply chain cooperation of members in the region, but also conducive to promoting the growth of global trade and investment and alleviating the adverse impact of the fragmentation of the world economy. In this regard, think tanks in the RCEP region are expected to give play to their professional advantages, strengthen policy interpretation and information exchange, promote the coordination and docking of standards in the region, and build a broader and deeper consensus for deepening regional cooperation in the RCEP region, eliminating interference outside the region, and promoting all parties to firmly promote the RCEP process. As Hao Fuman, director of the Institute of East Asian Studies of the National University of Singapore, said in a think tank activity, RCEP is a dynamic mechanism. In this process, think tanks can play a more important role, which will be further strengthened in the future.
The formation of a large market in the RCEP region requires multiple efforts. The cooperation of think tanks in the region is expected to build a "think tank network" for RCEP, build more bridges for communication between different countries and cultures, and promote the further release of RCEP dividends.
