During his official visit to Singapore on October 26, 2025, Chinese Premier Li Qiang emphasized China’s commitment to advancing the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (FTA) 3.0. Speaking at a meeting with Singapore’s Acting President Eddie Teo at the Istana presidential palace, Premier Li highlighted the importance of fostering closer cooperation between China and ASEAN member states to achieve shared prosperity. He underscored China’s willingness to maintain robust communication and coordination with Singapore within multilateral frameworks, advocating for the principles of multilateralism, free trade, and an inclusive global economic order. Premier Li noted that the world is currently navigating a period of significant transformation, marked by intertwined global challenges. In this context, he stressed the need for China and Singapore, as strategic partners, to enhance unity and collaboration. Looking ahead, Premier Li expressed China’s readiness to deepen high-level exchanges, support each other’s core interests, and expand cooperation in emerging sectors such as the digital economy, green development, and artificial intelligence. He also welcomed Singaporean enterprises to explore opportunities in China’s vast market, fostering mutual growth. Acting President Eddie Teo reciprocated these sentiments, acknowledging the strong bilateral ties between the two nations and expressing optimism about the potential of China’s 15th Five-Year Plan to benefit the region and beyond. Teo reiterated Singapore’s commitment to aligning development strategies with China and strengthening the ASEAN-China comprehensive strategic partnership.
China ready to work with ASEAN members to build successful FTA 3.0, says Chinese premier
