The 3rd Meetings of the Joint Executive Board and the Joint Council of ASEAN-China Centre Convened

On 17 December 2013, the 3rd Meetings of the Joint Executive Board (JEB) and the Joint Council (JC) of the ASEAN-China Centre was held at ACC Secretariat in Beijing.

The Joint Executive Board Meeting was co-chaired by H.E. Mme. Magdalene Teo, Ambassador of Brunei Darussalam to China, and Mr. Hong Liang, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Asian Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China. Representatives from China and ASEAN Member States attended the Meeting.

The JEB Meeting deliberated on ACC's Annual Report of 2013 of ACC, the Plan of Operation and Work Programme of 2014, as well as the Proposed Budget of Operational Expenditure of 2014, and made some recommendations to and preparations for the Joint Council Meeting, convened soon later in the same day.

The JEB Meeting also made some useful suggestions on how to improve the organizational work of ACC for JC Meeting's consideration.

The Joint Council Meeting, convened after the JEB Meeting, was co-chaired by Mr. Haji Rozaimee DP Haji Abdullah, Acting Head of Trade Promotion of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Brunei Darussalam, and H.E. Mme. Yang Xiuping, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to ASEAN. Representatives from China and ASEAN Member States as well as the ASEAN Secretariat attended the JC Meeting.

H.E. Mme. Yang Xiuping commended and congratulated ACC for its fruitful achievements and important role in enhancing mutual trust, friendship and win-win cooperation between ASEAN and China. She expressed that major activities of ACC were responsive to the calls by the leaders of ASEAN Member States and China, and were conducive to the functional cooperation in trade, investment, education, culture, tourism as well as public relations between each other. She reaffirmed China’s strong commitment to continue to work closely with ASEAN Member States to ensure greater success of ACC in the future.

Mr. Haji Rozaimee DP Haji Abdullahsaid and other participants from ASEAN commended ACC Secretary-General and ACC staff for their dedication towards fulfilling the mandates of ACC, as a one-stop Information Centre and Activities Centre, to further enhance friendship, communication, cooperation and connectivity between ASEAN and China. It is believed that, through its various activities, ACC will live up to the expectations of the governments of the member states of the Centre, and help further elevate the vigorous, dynamic and mutually beneficial relations between ASEAN and China.

Secretary-General Ma Mingqiang expressed his heartfelt appreciation to all member states of the Centre for the strong support to ACC Secretariat. He reaffirmed ACC’s commitment to conduct core activities and further facilitate trade, investment, education, culture and tourism exchanges, and ACC as a channel to further enhance better understanding and communication between ASEAN and China，so as to make new contribution to the future development of ASEAN-China strategic partnership.

The JC Meeting adopted ACC's Annual Report of 2013, the Plan of Operation and Work Programme of 2014 as well as the Proposed Budget of Operational Expenditure of 2014, which would guide ACC’s work in the year 2014. The Meeting agreed to convene the 4th Meeting of the Joint Council of ACC in the last quarter of 2014.