cover of episode Chinese president’s first 2025 overseas visit: championing multilateralism in a fragmented world

Chinese president’s first 2025 overseas visit: championing multilateralism in a fragmented world

2025/4/17
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旁白
知名游戏《文明VII》的开场动画预告片旁白。
赵云飞
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@旁白 : 全球经济正经历一个动荡时期,主要超级大国从全球化中撤出,给全球经济带来不确定性。中国国家主席习近平2025年首次出访东南亚三国(越南、马来西亚、柬埔寨),这些国家也是中国最大贸易伙伴东盟的关键成员。此访与美国不断上升的关税有关,也反映出中国对区域伙伴关系的更大愿望。 @赵云飞 : 习近平主席对马来西亚的访问受到了盛大的欢迎,马来西亚总理安瓦尔·易卜拉欣全程陪同。这体现了马中关系的密切程度以及马来西亚对这次访问的高度重视。马中合作始于工业和基础设施合作,例如“姐妹园区”,并已扩展到铁路等基础设施建设。两国在广泛领域开展合作,这反映了两国之间的互信。马来西亚有大量的华人社区,中国文化对马来西亚社会有深远的影响,支付宝等中国科技也得到广泛应用。马中两国共享相似的文化和亚洲价值观,这促进了两国之间的合作。近年来,越来越多的中国公民前往马来西亚旅游和投资。随着更多合作协议的签署,将会有更多中国公司来马来西亚投资。与其他国家相比,马来西亚在与中国的贸易方面相对独立。马来西亚正在积极利用区域经济倡议(如RCEP和“一带一路”倡议)为中国公民创造机会,但这并非只针对中国,而是对所有国家开放的。中国产品和品牌在马来西亚很常见,支付宝等中国科技也得到广泛应用。习近平主席的访问开启了马中关系新的篇章,中国正在加强与周边国家的合作关系。中国与马来西亚之间不断发展的伙伴关系反映了中国加强与东南亚国家关系的更大趋势。中国加强与东盟国家的关系,马来西亚作为东盟轮值主席国发挥着桥梁作用。中国与东盟国家加强合作,以应对美国贸易关税等挑战。习近平主席选择访问越南、马来西亚和柬埔寨,是因为这三个国家在地区合作和地缘政治中具有重要地位。习近平主席的访问可能标志着中东盟关系的一个转折点,未来双方将在基础设施、数字经济和人文交流等领域加强合作。东盟国家可以通过加强与中国的贸易来应对关税的影响。中国加强与东盟国家的地区联系,是应对全球碎片化的一种回应,中国同时致力于全球和区域贸易。习近平主席强调了全球南方国家团结合作的重要性。中国正在加倍努力加强与东盟的地区联系,强调团结合作的重要性。中国致力于多边主义,为周边国家和世界提供发展机遇。 赵云飞: 我在马来西亚经历了热带气候,以及对中国国家主席习近平的空前欢迎规模。总理安瓦尔·易卜拉欣从机场迎接习近平主席,并在三天访问期间全程陪同,包括与国王会面和双边会谈,以及在机场送行。这体现了马来西亚对中国的高度重视。人们普遍认为习近平主席的访问是期待已久的,因为上次访问是在12年前。马来西亚的天气变化无常,这与北京截然不同。我撰写了一篇关于马来西亚和中国如何携手共建未来的文章,重点关注两国之间的工业和基础设施合作项目,例如“姐妹园区”和东海岸铁路项目。这些项目不仅加强了两国的经济联系,也提升了马来西亚的基础设施水平。习近平主席的访问进一步提升了两国合作的水平,签署了大约30份合作文件,涵盖人工智能、导航系统、文化交流等广泛领域。这反映了两国之间深厚的互信。马来西亚拥有庞大的华人社区,中国文化和科技(如支付宝)已融入马来西亚社会。中国和马来西亚共享相似的文化和亚洲价值观,这有助于促进两国之间的合作与投资。中国公司正在积极把握马来西亚提供的投资机会,这得益于马来西亚的开放政策。虽然马来西亚与中国的贸易关系密切,但它在与中国的贸易方面也保持相对独立。马来西亚正在积极利用RCEP和“一带一路”倡议等区域经济倡议,为中国公民创造机会,但这并非只针对中国,而是对所有国家开放的。由于工作繁忙,我没有太多时间逛购物中心,但支付宝等中国科技在马来西亚非常普及。习近平主席的访问开启了马中关系新的篇章,未来两国将在安全合作等领域进一步深化合作。中国正在加强与周边国家的合作关系,此次访问正值美国政府实施贸易关税之际,这使得东盟国家加强与中国的合作更加紧迫。

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Translations:
中文

As the world's leading superpower pulls back from decades of globalization, uncertainty looms large over the global economy.

Amid this shifting landscape, Chinese President Xi Jinping has embarked on his first overseas trip of 2025, visiting Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia. These three countries aren't just close neighbors of China, they're also key players in ASEAN, the Southeast Asian bloc that's been China's largest trading partner for the past four years.

So how does this trip connect to China's push to cushion the blow from rising U.S. tariffs? And what does it reveal about Beijing's broader aspirations for regional partnerships? In this episode of Deep Dive, my colleague Zhao Yingfei joins us from Kuala Lumpur to unpack what President Xi's Southeast Asia tour signals about the future of China's economic and trade strategy. It's Thursday, April 17th.

Yunfei, welcome back to the show from the tropical Kuala Lumpur. And let's cut to the chase. What do you think are the biggest achievements of President Xi's trip to Malaysia so far? Well, there are a lot of achievements. I would say that you mentioned about tropical. Certainly the weather over here is really hot. And, you know, not only in terms of the temperature, but also in terms of the scale of, you know, welcome. I've been...

many international airports welcoming presidency, but I would say that this is one of the largest scale of welcoming for the Chinese president that I have ever been to. For example, I was at the airport when they were receiving presidency, there was a team with more than 300 people and there was a high school band, there is a welcoming crowd and there are a lot of folk dancers

that doing the mix of cultural, you know, stancings and also given the high level of the people. I just came back from the airport seeing

President Xi off. He was just leaving Malaysia and heading to Cambodia. And Prime Minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, was seeing him off from the airport. And this is also quite unique because given the fact that President Xi was here for three days,

Prime Minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, received President Xi from the airport on Tuesday, and on the entire day on Wednesday, he was with President Xi, both in the morning session when the King of Malaysia, His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, was hosting a welcome ceremony to the Chinese president. The prime minister was there as well, including the afternoon session, where there's bilateral meeting between the prime minister and the Chinese president.

And then the prime minister seeing him off

on Thursday at the airport. So the entire three days he was accompanying the Chinese president. So that was a really large scale of welcome as well as a scale in terms of reception. So a lot of dancers, high school music band and the prime minister was there to welcome President Xi and also to see him off personally at the airport. So that's quite a high level welcoming for President Xi's first trip.

in over a decade. And why Malaysia is paying such high attention to President Xi's trip this time? What do you think are the reasons?

You mentioned it, that's over a decade. So this is the second visit by the Chinese president in 12 years. The second visit. I spoke to a lot of people, including scholars and people on the street. And there are some people really tell me that, really, that was been 12 years? And this is way overdue. It doesn't feel like that long.

It doesn't feel that long because remember last time he was here, there was an upgrade of the relationship. So this time President Xi was here, you know, after 12 years. And he also published an article saying that last trip really gave him a great, you know,

impression. So the way how people here say that this is overdue is not complaining. This is the way how they express that, hey, we have a very close bond between China and Malaysia and certainly we're close neighbors. So he's totally welcome to visit this beautiful country. And you were there actually before President Xi arrived in Malaysia. And so what's your personal impression of the tropical country? How did you like it?

Oh, speaking of the weather, I think it's quite different from Beijing because it could rain at any time. It doesn't have any prediction because when we live in Beijing, you know, there is a certain period of time when there is a prediction of rain. And then over here, it rains suddenly when we're seeing receiving the Chinese president at the airport, you know, just 20 minutes before his arrival, it was rain heavily. And one hour before that, it was there's

clear sunny sky. So it's really different from hour to hour. But luckily, when the Chinese president arrived at the airport, it was drilling a little bit and then really cool down the weather a little bit so that people are enjoying the temperature at the same time, not affected by the rain. So very unpredictable weather.

And earlier this month, you published an article called "Twin Parks Share Dreams and How Malaysia and China are Building the Future Together" on the local newspaper, The Star. So why did you choose that specific topic? I mean, what was your thought process when you decided to go from that angle?

Because that's how the cooperation project got started between the two countries. It got started with the industrial cooperation and infrastructure cooperation, the twin parks. One part was in China, the China-Malaysia Qingzhou Industrial Park. Another part is in Malaysia, the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park. So this is a really...

um you know industrial based uh cooperation and now they're expanding to the infrastructure level they have the east coast rail link that really goes through the industrial park and really upgrade the infrastructure of the city of quentin in general just to make the industrial park as a point get connected

to the other parts of the world, especially going over to China. So there's not only a linkage of the railroad infrastructure, but also the sea infrastructure, but also the port infrastructure, the connection

between Kwantan and the port of Qingzhou. So certainly now this is an infrastructure cooperation. And this time, President Xi's visit has really upgraded the level of cooperation really to the next level. The two sides signed cooperation documents. I did a rough count. About 30 documents on Thursday was being... About 30 documents was being signed on Wednesday. And...

certainly if you look at diving into the specific field of cooperation, it could be something really sensitive from artificial intelligence, the beta navigation system, to something really, you know, leisure from coconut to panda research. So, you know, it's really a wide range of cooperation field that also can give

an idea that how the mutual trust between the two countries are really benefiting the people. Right, so a lot of cooperation on the economic level and from different aspects. Some people might know that Malaysia actually has a very large and vibrant Chinese community and the data that I have, the most recent data that I have is that there were almost 7 million Chinese

Immigrants in Malaysia, and that accounts for roughly a quarter of the population in Malaysia back in 2020. Now, as you walk through the cities, the streets in Kuala Lumpur, do you see a lot of visible signs of Chinese culture, like language, food, businesses, restaurants, or even festivals?

it's really easy to encounter some people speaking Chinese even the fact that the nationality of person is not Chinese probably their ancestors are Chinese so certainly there is uh one of our drivers is actually uh Chinese and um you know his his grandfather was Chinese I asked him okay do you really are if you yourself got engaged because you're you're

you know, nationality is Malaysia. He would tell me that I still eat Chinese food. So as you mentioned, Chinese food is really popular on the street. Also, you know, I'm also amazed by the connection between the two sides because

Almost at every restaurant and convenience stores will be able to use the Alipay. So we don't need credit card anymore when we are walking in the street. So you can see that it's really deeply embedded. The Chinese culture as well as the Chinese technology is deeply embedded.

As President Xi himself really mentioned that China and Malaysia are neighbors across the sea, but certainly this is perhaps the way how we explain that neighbors across the sea is simply because of the similar culture, the similar Asian value that we share that can really can build a community, a peaceful development community within different cultures and different ethnicities. So there's a lot of policies to help

Chinese people coming to Malaysia, like you mentioned Alipay, you don't need to bring a credit card to Malaysia anymore for Chinese travelers. So these years, do you think there is a rise of Chinese nationals traveling to Malaysia in the recent years? And I'm not just talking about travelers and perhaps also people, businessmen coming to Malaysia for investment. Of course, when we talk about

There is a visa free program that is really even before the visa free program. There was already quite popular with people frequently traveled to Southeast Asia countries. You know, the three countries that President Xi is visiting this time are very popular destinations to the Chinese travelers.

So does the investment, just because of the similar value we share and the language that connected between the two countries, because a lot of time people can communicate in Chinese, so can make them communicate even more complicated topics because of the shared language. And that can help better promote the further investment process.

of Chinese companies over here to Malaysia. I mentioned about the Alipay was really successful. Uh, so certainly of course there, there will be, um, there, there, as there's more, you know, signed documents, documents being signed, including the beta navigation system, including the, um, exchange in culture and, you know, a movie as well as, uh, you know,

AI perspectives, certainly there will be more Chinese companies come over and invest in Malaysia. And I spoke with a guest, a member of Malaysia parliament, and he says that comparing to the other two countries, President Xi has visited

Malaysia is comparatively a little bit more independent in terms of trading with China, despite the fact that China is the top trading partner of Malaysia.

So that also can give more opportunities for Chinese investments to come over and settle down in Malaysia. Do you think Malaysia is positioning the country itself for Chinese nationals, especially under the frameworks like regional economic initiatives like RCEP and the Belt and Road Initiative?

Yeah, because of the integration of the development plans, the development plans of both two countries really share the same spirit. That's why how it got better integrated. But I would like to emphasize that Malaysia is not providing this opportunity uniquely for China. I think Malaysia really focuses on diversity a lot.

So it's not only an opportunity for Chinese companies, but also they are really providing opportunities for many other countries in the region. And what Chinese companies is really grasping the opportunities over here. So we are seeing an increasing amount of Chinese investment over here. And it's also because of the openness of the policy that can ensure that's happening.

not just because of Malaysia is doing that uniquely for China, it's just because of the countries. Right, so Malaysia welcomes foreign capitals, businesses investing in the country, but at the same time, sounds like Chinese nationals are also quite willing to explore the market in Malaysia. And so, are Chinese products and brands common in Malaysia?

I would still want to emphasize I didn't go to the shopping mall quite often because we were really busy with reporting. But certainly, I would say that when you want to check out from the convenience store, the Alipay, the technology exchanges, it was really, really popular. Yeah, so haven't got the time to browse the shopping mall yet.

So hopefully someday in the future, you can explore these Chinese businesses, the presence of them in Malaysia. So now after President Xi's first trip after 12, over a decade, what can we expect from China-Malaysia cooperation and their partnership going forward in the future from now?

Well, because last year, the two countries celebrated the 50 years of ties between the two countries since they established diplomatic ties. And this time, President Xi's visit, he mentioned about the new golden next 50 years. So certainly opening a new chapter for the next 50 years. And it's a gold 50 years described by Chinese President Xi. Certainly there's

something beyond the previous cooperation. As I mentioned, it started from industrial cooperation, infrastructure cooperation, and then the next level from more cooperation that really benefit build on mutual trust. For example, China wants to, you know, strengthen security cooperation with Malaysia in the next step. So certainly we're giving the bigger picture. China is really strengthening its cooperation

relationship with neighboring countries because this time President Xi's trip abroad, this is his first trip of this year, abroad to overseas trip of this year. And then it came after a week after the work conference on the central conference on the work related to neighboring countries. So certainly China is really showing its dedication to fostering an amicable, secure and prosperous neighborhood.

So the growing partnership between China and Malaysia and President Xi's trip to Malaysia this time is reflecting a larger pattern that China is strengthening its ties across countries in Southeast Asia.

This is one of the stops for the president's trip to Southeast Asia, first to Vietnam, now Malaysia. And earlier today, you were at the airport to see him off for him to start his trip to Cambodia. So China has been deepening its ties with the ASEAN countries. What are the key drivers behind China's growing engagement with the regional bloc?

Well, I think if you see how this trip is being planned, it's interesting to see that Malaysia is the second stop of this trip. But what really makes Malaysia unique is its role. This year, Malaysia served as a rotating chair of ASEAN. So certainly...

President Xi himself is suggesting that Malaysia, he hopes that Malaysia can work as a bridge between China and ASEAN, so play a pivotal role as a bridge that connecting China and ASEAN countries.

really, last time when Malaysia worked as an ASEAN chair, Malaysia did do so and better promoted cooperation with China. So certainly there's a lot of anticipation between a further, closer relationship between China and ASEAN itself. And also it's because of China really emphasizing its relationship with neighboring countries. And given the fact that I'm pretty sure that

when this trip got arranged, there was not yet a terror war at the moment. Right. But all of a sudden there was a crazy, you know, leverage of terror from the U.S. administration. Certainly now it turned the topic a little bit between the ASEAN countries with China on how to

better support, better frame, more resilient trade cooperation between the two sides. Yeah, so this state visit is taking place coinciding with American administration's trade tariffs. We'll get to that topic deeper a bit later. But before that,

Among all these countries in ASEAN, why these particular three countries? Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia. Why choosing these three countries for President Xi's visit? What's the reasoning behind that? Well, that's a great question. I think if you look at the three countries, and certainly Malaysia serves as the chair of ASEAN, so certainly it plays a pivotal role.

Okay, the following is what I guess. I think that's a tough question. So Vietnam, because it's a communist country. So certainly last time President Xi was visiting Vietnam was back in 2023, at the end of 2023. So certainly, you know, President Xi wants to emphasize, strengthen its ties with, you know, communist party country.

And Cambodia, I think it's also a very key country when it comes to the South China Sea issues, I'm guessing, because two sides have relatively agreement on the security issue in the South China Sea. So that's why...

the Chinese president is picking the other two countries. You probably want to turn to a more expert on this topic, but certainly, I guess the reason why he wants to come to Malaysia is because Malaysia is the chair of ASEAN. Right. So for this trip, President Xi's visit to the three countries might signal a turning point

in China-ASEAN relations. And are we likely to see more integration in areas like infrastructure, digital economy, or people-to-people exchanges between China and ASEAN countries? I think so. It's not just because of President Xi's visit, because

when his time this time's visit he really showing his anticipation and support to malaysia serving as the chair of asean so certainly we will be able to see the next step of move but also it comes amidst the tariff situation at this moment so certainly there um you know a lot of the guests i spoke with they say that the asean countries

should come together and come up with countermeasures, maybe not a strong countermeasures, but the relatively solution to the current situation. And one of the possible solutions that they could do is strengthening ties with China and doing more businesses with China. A lot of guests told me that

China probably is not worried about the trade tensions because China has a really strong domestic market, given the fact that the first quarter of China's GDP growth was 5.4%. That was surprisingly high. But really, when it comes to countries in the Southeast Asia, the better way that they can strive in their economy, one strategy is to...

advancing their trade. So when it comes to tariff, they really reduce the amount and that really can lead them to find alternatives.

So now onto this topic of tariffs. As you said earlier, President Xi's trip to these three ASEAN countries wasn't planned for U.S. tariffs, but it just happens to coincide with the administration's announcement. And now we are seeing rising protectionism and trade tensions.

And do you think China's deeper regional ties with the ASEAN countries is the country's response to the global fragmentation? And people might be worried, like, is China still willing for global free trade? Or will China start to focus more on regional trade?

Well, yes and no. I think China wants to do both at the same time, even despite the fact there is no tariff. Certainly, this trip is being planned quite early because this is the visit of the head of state. So certainly, even though there's no trade tensions, China do wants to expand its cooperation with neighboring countries because that's always been

the Chinese diplomacy's priority. As I mentioned, the Central Conference on the work related to neighboring countries that is being held last week certainly stressed the importance of how China needs to build an amicable relationship

you know, situation with its neighboring countries. So it's there. And then it comes to the trade. And that can really give the urgency that how the East Asian countries should really work together to combat the current situation. When President Xi was hosted by the King of Malaysia, His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, President Xi says that the two countries should play, should jointly push forward the conflict

development of the global south. See, so he mentioned about the global south. Even the fact that this is a bilateral meeting between China and Malaysia, President Xi still mentioned that it's important for the global south to get united. And the King says that Malaysia is dedicated to realizing the greater development of ASEAN-China relations.

So as we record this conversation, President Xi has already finished his visit to Malaysia and has started, kicked off his visit to Cambodia. But my colleague Yunfei has finished his reporting duty in Malaysia and is ready to fly back. So wish you a safe trip, safe flight back to Beijing. Thank you very much for your time, Yunfei. Thank you for having me.

What's becoming clearer is that China is doubling down on its regional ties, strengthening both political and trade relationships within ASEAN. President Xi's message, published across major newspapers in all three countries, underscored a broader theme: Unity brings strength, and only through cooperation can nations thrive together.

From the Belt and Road Initiative to BRICS+ and RCEP, China is positioning itself as a champion of multilateralism, offering development opportunities not just to its neighbours but to the wider world.

And that brings us to the end of this episode of Deep Dive. If you enjoyed what you just heard, don't forget to follow us on podcast platforms. Just search for Deep Dive. You can also leave a comment to let us know what you want to learn about China and beyond. This episode is brought to you by me, Li Yunqi, and my colleagues Zhang Zhang and Qi Zhi. Special thanks to CGTN reporter Zhao Yunfei. I'll see you in the next one.