The three sides need to iron out differences in development as well as strategic priorities in areas such as dependence on the US, analysts say.

Southeast Asian nations held a summit Tuesday with China and six Persian Gulf countries in efforts to expand economic engagement as they grapple with U.S. tariff hikes.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned on Saturday that the threat from China was real and potentially imminent as he pushed allies in the Indo-Pacific to spend more on their own defence needs.Hegseth,

Texts from simultaneous interpretation generated by a large language model for AI interpretation of a Guangxi-based technology company are displayed during an international conference in Nanning, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, May 13, 2025. (Xinhua/Huang Haoming)

Chinese Premier Li Qiang rallied a group of Southeast Asian and Gulf states to deepen cooperation and touted his country’s economic strength, as Beijing ramps up its charm offensive abroad to counter US efforts to isolate the economy.

China deployed fleets larger than usual near Taiwan, the southern Japanese islands and the East and South China Seas.

In his opening remarks, Hegseth warned China seeks no less than hegemony over the region and is increasingly willing to resort to force. He cited confrontations in the South China Sea, including incidents in which China's coast guard used water cannon against Philippine vessels, injuring several people last year.

China stands ready … to embrace greater openness and cooperation,” Premier Li Qiang said at Fortune’s ASEAN-GCC-China Economic Forum in Kuala Lumpur.

ACKNOWLEDGING the impact and potential of artificial intelligence (AI), the Asean-China Center (ACC) invited diplomatic envoys and media practitioners from China and Asean countries to promote practical cooperation in the region.