The Chinese foreign minister said the ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague was “orchestrated and manipulated by external powers” who wanted to “destabilise the South China Sea for their own benefit”.

From July 3 to 5, the 2025 ASEAN-China (Qingdao) Event of Economic and Trade Cooperation and People-to-People Exchanges took place at Qingdao Haitian Center under the theme "Blue Partnership for a Shared Future.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that against the backdrop of rampant unilateralism and protectionism, China and ASEAN countries are demonstrating a strong desire to support each other, unite and cooperate, and jointly meet challenges.

China has been a fierce critic of sweeping U.S. tariffs that Trump announced on April 2. He later delayed the implementation of most but China, which has said it will respond with its own tariffs on U.S. imports, now faces a deadline next month to negotiate a deal.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and China Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended separate meetings with their ASEAN counterparts in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday (Jul 10).

China and ASEAN have agreed to submit an upgraded free trade deal to their leaders for approval this October. The announcement came from Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during a press briefing in Kuala Lumpur.

China has committed to signing the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ) Treaty "as soon as possible" without reservation, says Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

China will sign up to a Southeast Asian treaty banning nuclear weapons in the region as soon as all documentation is ready, Malaysia's foreign minister said on Thursday.