On December 2, 2022, the "12th China's Neighborhood Diplomacy Seminar" hosted by the China Neighborhood Research Center of Fudan University was held at Fudan University in a combination of online and offline. The theme of this symposium is "China's Neighborhood Diplomacy under the Century of Change: Peace, Cooperation and Development". More than 20 experts and scholars from diplomatic systems and academic institutions of China, Cambodia, Vietnam, the United States, Russia, the Republic of Korea, Pakistan, the Philippines and Indonesia attended the seminar. Professor Wu Xinbo, Dean of the Institute of International Studies of Fudan University, delivered the opening remarks. Han Mei, Counsellor of the Department of Asian Affairs of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Ziv Isayong, State Secretary of the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, delivered the keynote speeches. Wu said that despite the many challenges faced by the surrounding situation in the past year, China's diplomacy has carried out a lot of practical work under the banner of "peace, development and cooperation", which is of great significance to stabilizing the security situation in the neighborhood. In the face of profound changes in the international situation, China has firmly advanced its neighborhood diplomacy in accordance with the principles of "amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness" and "friendship and partnership with neighbors". Ziv Isay Aung said that China is an important coordinator of regional security issues and an active contributor to regional peace and development. China and ASEAN have maintained a sound momentum of cooperation. Cambodia appreciates the initiative of a community with a shared future for mankind and will deepen practical cooperation with China. During the conference, the participating scholars held discussions on four sub-topics, including "Assessment of China's neighborhood diplomacy in the past year", "Building a high-quality" Belt and Road "and Post-epidemic economic recovery", "China-Us strategic Interaction and reshaping the Asia-Pacific multilateral mechanism", and "the model of Foreign Ministers' Meeting of Afghanistan's Neighbors and China's plan for security governance in the neighborhood". This paper makes an in-depth analysis of the new situation and features of China's neighborhood diplomacy in 2022, and puts forward a series of practical suggestions and propositions.

The year 2022 will be an extraordinary year for China's diplomacy. In this sub-topic, five scholars from the perspective of combining macro and micro, summarized and looked forward to the new challenges and potential countermeasures of China's neighborhood diplomacy in 2022, and carried out detailed analysis focusing on the changes in the security situation of the Korean Peninsula, the South Asian subcontinent, Russia and Central Asia. To outline the new challenges of China's neighborhood diplomacy in 2022, Zhao Qinghai, a researcher at the Center for Maritime Security and Cooperation at the China Institute of International Studies, elaborated from five aspects: Second, regional security is becoming more complicated; third, regional economic and trade cooperation is becoming more politicized; fourth, political changes in China's neighbors are adding variables to China's cooperation with China; and fifth, non-traditional security challenges are on the rise. Looking at the potential path for China to address the security challenges in its neighborhood, Qi Huaigao, vice dean of the Institute of International Studies at Fudan University, put forward the concept of "stabilizing the West and expanding the east". He believes that China's neighborhood diplomacy needs to make efforts in four directions. It seeks priority development in Southeast Asia, strategic coordination in Central Asia, improvement of relations with India in South Asia, and active stability of relations with Japan and the ROK in Northeast Asia. In addition, China should moderate shrinkage in the west, increase efforts to curb external forces' interference in Taiwan, and strengthen security cooperation with the South Pacific island countries. Focusing on the new changes in the security situation on the Korean Peninsula in 2022, Zheng Jiyong, a professor at the Center for Korean and Korean Studies at Fudan University, summarized four significant changes in the strategic environment on the Korean Peninsula: First, the strategic competition between major powers led to the "Cold War return" on the Korean Peninsula; second, the geopolitical conflict led to reverse changes in North Korea's attitude toward the nuclear issue. Third, the weak international cooperation mechanism has led to the deterioration of the awareness of rules between the DPRK and the ROK, and fourth, the rapid rise of populist tendencies in the DPRK and the ROK. Regarding the changes in South Asia's internal and external security situation in 2022, Lin Minwang, a researcher at the Center for South Asian Studies at Fudan University, summarized three significant changes: First, South Asian countries are generally Mired in internal difficulties and even political turmoil; second, South Asian countries generally seek to maintain a delicate diplomatic balance between China and India and the United States; third, the West continues to increase its efforts to woo India in the context of intensifying local geopolitical conflicts. Reflecting on the trajectory of Sino-Russian relations in 2022, Zhang Yao, associate researcher of the Marine and Polar Research Center of the Shanghai Institute for International Studies, believes that although the Sino-Russian partnership has been troubled by geopolitical conflicts, it is still moving steadily along the agenda set by the two sides, and the two countries still maintain the basic consensus on the strategic cooperative partnership.

Second, jointly build high-quality "Belt and Road" and post-epidemic economic recovery

As an international public good for China to promote regional infrastructure construction, economic connectivity and people-to-people ties, the Belt and Road Initiative has been widely welcomed by countries along the routes and is also facing new opportunities. Standing at a new historical node, the four scholars of this sub-topic summarized and looked forward to the new opportunities for the "Belt and Road" Initiative to promote the region around China, and made specific analysis based on micro-cases such as Vietnam and Cambodia. Lei Xiaohua, a researcher at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies of Guangxi Academy of Social Sciences, focused on the five opportunities facing the Belt and Road Initiative on the basis of review, namely: the fourth industrial revolution brings new technologies and new forms of business, the novel coronavirus pandemic promotes the reshaping of the global industrial chain, the intensification of geopolitical conflicts leads to the expansion of the internationalization of the RMB, the deepening of the green energy revolution and the industrialization of countries along the route. Focusing on the new changes in China-Vietnam relations, Zhao Weihua, professor of the China Neighborhood Research Center of Fudan University, and Nguyen Xuan Qiang, dean of the Institute of Chinese Studies of the Academy of Social Sciences of Vietnam, respectively focused on the positive significance of Trong's visit to China and the bright prospect of strategic docking between China and Vietnam. Zhao said that Trong's visit to China has deepened the bilateral consensus between China and Vietnam. China and Vietnam should implement the leaders' consensus while the iron is hot, earnestly promote railway connectivity and optimize a fair and just business environment. The Prime minister spoke highly of the prospect of linking the Belt and Road Initiative with the "Two corridors and One Economic Circle", calling for the two sides to better manage differences, implement bilateral consensus and promote steady and long-term bilateral relations. Based on the micro-case of cooperation between Cambodia's Sihanoukville province and the Belt and Road Initiative, Kausa Paz, associate professor of the City University of New York, believes that the Cambodian government's idea of turning Sihanoukville Province into a tourist destination, transportation hub, special economic zone, and "blue economy" engine is highly consistent with the concept of the Belt and Road Initiative, and bilateral cooperation between China and Cambodia is expected to continue to deepen.

Third, China-Us strategic interaction

The overall situation of strategic competition between China and the United States will not only directly affect the relationship between China and the United States, but also deeply shape the security environment of the Asia-Pacific region and the diplomatic behavior of regional countries. In this sub-topic, five scholars focused on the regional security situation in the context of Sino-US strategic competition, the effectiveness of international mechanisms, and the diplomatic strategic adjustment of Southeast Asian countries, and drew a series of novel and detailed conclusions.

Zhu Feng, a professor of international relations at Nanjing University, focused on the "paradigm change" in Sino-US relations, saying that China has no intention of adopting a confrontational policy in the face of a "new Cold war" unilaterally provoked by the United States. On the contrary, China should maintain its strategic focus and adjust its regional policies to resolve disputes in a more constructive way and defuse the strategic pressure exerted by the United States. Zhao Minghao, professor of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University, deeply analyzed the path of the United States to promote the "Indo-Pacific strategy". The United States has vigorously advocated the "China threat", adjusted the regional alliance partner system, and increased economic pressure, which has brought great challenges to China's peripheral security. Exploring the path of healthy competition between China and the United States and supporting ASEAN's central role are of great significance to resolving security risks. Lu Guangsheng, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of Yunnan University, compared the different connotations of Indo-Pacific strategies of various countries/regions in the world, and found that they differ significantly in terms of "explicitly deterring China" or "pragmatic self-interest", "defense and security" or "economic development", and the delineation of the "Indo-Pacific" region. In response to the Indo-Pacific pressure, China should respect ASEAN centrality and further promote regional connectivity and economic cooperation. Lee Hee-ok, a professor at Sungkyunkwan University's Sungkyunkwan Institute of China Studies in South Korea, focused on the multilateral mechanism in East Asia in the context of Sino-US strategic competition. He said that the normalization of major powers' strategic competition, the intensification of regional security conflicts, and the food and energy crises have led to the retreat of multilateralism. In this regard, we should firmly strengthen the resilience of multilateralism in East Asia, reject the path of regional division and exclusion, and work together to address risks and challenges. Romel Banleyi, president of the Philippine Institute for Intelligence and Security Studies, analyzed the foreign policy adjustments of the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries in the context of Sino-US strategic competition. He said that since the Marcos administration came to power, the Philippines has tried to achieve a strategic balance between China and the United States to promote flexible diplomacy. Pursuing flexible diplomacy oriented by national interests is the strategic choice of most Southeast Asian countries.

In 2021, the situation in Afghanistan experienced dramatic changes, with the US military withdrawing in a hurry, the Ghani government rapidly collapsing, and the Taliban regaining state power. In this sub-topic, four scholars focus on the new coordination mechanism centered on the Foreign Ministers' meeting of Afghanistan's neighboring countries, assess the domestic political situation in Afghanistan, and analyze China's role in the Afghan peace process from multiple perspectives.

Syed Hassan Jawed, a professor at the Institute of Chinese Studies at Pakistan's National University of Science and Technology, reviewed the historical background of the Afghan issue, fully affirmed China's contribution to the process of resolving the Afghan conflict, and believed that the Tunxi Initiative and regional economic cooperation will lay the foundation for the peace process in Afghanistan.

Zhu Yongbiao, a professor at the Center for Afghan Studies of Lanzhou University, focused on the change in the governance model of major powers on the Afghan issue. He said that the governance model of major powers on the Afghan issue has changed from the US-led, exclusive and hypocritical "monopolistic hegemony" to the "cooperative defense" centered on the mechanism of foreign ministers' meeting of Afghanistan's neighbors with the characteristics of respect, cooperation, openness, defense and sharing.

Sun Degang, professor of Middle East Studies Center of Fudan University, focused on the role of West Asian countries in the process of resolving the Afghan issue, constructively saying that the active participation of West Asian countries is conducive to promoting the peace process and economic development of Afghanistan, helping to close the cooperative relations between China and West Asian countries, and expanding the connotation of China's neighborhood diplomacy. Andrey Kortunov, Executive director of the Russian Council for International Affairs, assessed the new political situation in Afghanistan since the Taliban came to power.

The 12th Fudan University Symposium on China's Neighborhood Diplomacy reviewed the process of advancing China's neighborhood diplomacy in 2022, focusing on hot issues of neighborhood security. The scholars participated in the symposium were full of warm discussions, colorful views, and summarized many valuable experiences and conclusions. Under the macro background of comprehensive intensification of Sino-US strategic competition and frequent regional security risks, cooperation and peace have become the "biggest common divisor" of all parties. This symposium on China's Neighborhood Diplomacy has built a valuable platform for experts and scholars to offer suggestions and suggestions, and will certainly provide positive reference for the new layout of China's neighborhood diplomacy in the future.