The Kuala Lumpur Roundtable on Asia-Pacific Regional Cooperation, organized by the Boao Forum for Asia, has been held in Kuala Lumpur, bringing together over 200 representatives to discuss ways to deepen regional cooperation and advance the process of integration.
Participants expressed firm support for greater regional integration and free trade during the two-day event in Malaysia, also this year's Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) chair.
The rise of multipolarity and the Global South nations will re-energize globalization's aspirations while fending off threats to greater integration, trade and economic cooperation, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said in his special address during the plenary meeting on Wednesday.
"We're living through a weaponization of interdependence. Energy pipelines, shipping routes, semiconductor supply chains now have become instruments of unfair leverage. Payment systems and capital flows are deployed as tools of pressure. The result is pervasive uncertainty," he said.
Zhang Jun, Secretary-General of the Boao Forum for Asia, stated on the sidelines of the event that the world has entered a new period of turbulence and change, and the importance of regional cooperation has further increased.
"We all rely on the continuing regional economic integration, and definitely that will serve our long-term interest. But because of the trade war, definitely, regional cooperation is becoming more urgent and more pressing and more relevant," Zhang said.
The call for partnership in the face of challenges was echoed by Ban Ki-moon, former secretary general of the United Nations (UN), during his speech on stage at the roundtable.
"If we continue to cooperate, speak in a unified voice and exchange ideas on strategy and best policy practices, we can work towards an Asia that is stronger and more resilient," he said.
The forum was held from Aug. 26 to Aug. 27.
Boao Forum for Asia Roundtable on Asia-Pacific regional cooperation opens in Kuala Lumpur
