Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, chairman of Indonesia's National Economic Council, in Beijing on Thursday.
Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, the China-Indonesia comprehensive strategic partnership has continued to deepen.
China is willing to work with Indonesia to promote solidarity and self-strengthening of the Global South, Wang said.
The two countries should strengthen the alignment of their development strategies and promote the transformation and upgrading of bilateral cooperation, he said, adding that China is willing to help Indonesia enhance its capacity for independent development and accelerate its modernization process.
Luhut said Indonesia attaches great importance to its relations with China and is willing to work with China to translate the comprehensive strategic partnership into more outcomes of practical cooperation.
Chinese FM meets chairman of Indonesia's National Economic Council
The 23rd China-ASEAN Expo opened on Thursday in Nanning, capital of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, gathering many of the distinctive ASEAN products that traders are used to seeing at the event, alongside the debut of high value-added products.
More than 3,400 companies from over 70 countries and regions are attending, up 5.3 percent from the previous edition. This year's event runs from Sept 17 to 21.
Themed "CAFTA 3.0 Opportunities, Better Life," the expo covers a total exhibition area of about 170,000 square meters, showcasing the latest achievements in cooperation between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
"A new highlight of the ASEAN exhibition area, summed up in one sentence, is that old friends have arrived along with new technologies. Durian, coffee, fragrant rice and other well-known distinctive ASEAN products are once again making a splendid appearance this year. Old friends will not be absent," said Wang Jicai, secretary-general of the China-ASEAN Expo Secretariat.
"At the same time, the exhibit structure is accelerating its extension toward high-value-added and high-tech fields. For example, Brunei has brought AI companies, while Cambodia's Ministry of Post and Telecommunications (MPTC) and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation of Malaysia have organized high-tech enterprise to participate in the exhibition. Traditional specialties plus cutting-edge technologies make the displayed content more diverse," Wang added.
Timor-Leste, which became ASEAN's 11th member in October 2025, made its debut as a co-organizer at the expo, marking the first time all 11 ASEAN countries have gathered in Nanning.
"This is my first time in Nanning, so I'm really excited to promote my product," said an exhibitor from Timor-Leste.
Also for the first time, the event features a new exhibition area that highlights demand from ASEAN countries and uses intelligent technology to match enterprises with the countries.
Meanwhile, the 23rd China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit also opened Thursday in Nanning.
China and ASEAN are working to accelerate the implementation of the CAFTA 3.0 Upgrade Protocol. Signed in October 2025, the protocol covers areas such as the digital economy and green development.
Economic ties between China and ASEAN have continued to deepen. Bilateral trade topped 1 trillion U.S. dollars for the first time in 2025, totaling 1.05 trillion dollars, up 7.4 percent year on year. In the first seven months of 2026, trade between the two sides reached 744.41 billion dollars, an increase of 24.7 percent year on year and accounting for 21.8 percent of China's total foreign trade.
China has remained ASEAN's largest trading partner for 17 consecutive years, while ASEAN has been China's largest trading partner for six successive years.
High-value products join regional staples as 23rd China-ASEAN Expo opens in Nanning
