On the 28th, witnessed by Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar as well as leaders from ASEAN countries, Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao and Malaysian Minister of Investment, Trade, and Industry Zafrul, representing the Chinese and ASEAN sides respectively, signed the Protocol for Upgrading the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area to Version 3.0 in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur.
The signing of the protocol is a landmark achievement in implementing the important consensus reached by Chinese President Xi Jinping and ASEAN leaders at the 30th anniversary summit celebrating the establishment of China-ASEAN dialogue relations. It is also an important measure in implementing the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee’s directive to expand high-level opening-up and create a new paradigm of win-win cooperation. The upgrade to Version 3.0 of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area fully reflects both sides’ solemn commitment to supporting multilateralism and free trade, as well as their firm determination to jointly build an open, inclusive, rules-based large regional integrated market and a mutually beneficial and resilient regional industry and supply chain system. This will create rich market and industrial cooperation opportunities for both parties and for businesses worldwide, inject strong confidence and momentum into regional and even global economic growth, and serve as an important model for countries working together to meet international economic and trade challenges.
Since 2002, China and ASEAN have begun the process of constructing a free trade area, with Version 1.0 of the FTA fully established in 2010, and an upgrade to Version 2.0 completed in 2015. Construction of Version 3.0 officially began in November 2022, with negotiations fully concluded in May 2025. The upgrade to the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area Version 3.0 covers nine areas, including the digital economy, green economy, supply chain interconnectivity, standards and technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, customs procedures and trade facilitation, competition and consumer protection, micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises, and economic and technical cooperation. After the protocol is signed, both sides will carry out their respective domestic ratification procedures and work to promote the protocol's early entry into force and implementation.