On 2 April 2013,  Mr. Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand  and Mr. Zhang Yesui,  Vice Foreign Minister of China the People’s Republic of China co-chaired the 19th ASEAN-China Senior Officials’ Consultation in Beijing. 

              The Senior Officials exchanged in depth views on various issues in ASEAN-China relations, and agreed that throughout the years, the ASEAN-China Strategic Partnership has served as a key pillar of regional peace, stability and prosperity. They discussed ways to further expand and strengthen that partnership for mutual benefits as this year marks its 10th anniversary as well as the upcoming ASEAN Post Ministerial Conference with China in June and the 16th ASEAN-China Summit in October this year.

              The Senior Officials reaffirmed that maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea is very important for all countries in the region. In line with the ASEAN-China Joint Statement of the 15th ASEAN-China Summit on the 10th Anniversary of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DoC) adopted in Cambodia in 2012, the Senior Officials agreed to uphold commitments on the implementation of the DOC in a full and effective manner, while enhancing the importance of the adoption of the Code of Conduct (COC).

              Thailand will host the 20th ASEAN-China Senior Officials’ Consultation in March 2014.