As two major markets with populations of over 1.4 billion and over 600 million respectively, upgrading the free trade zone cooperation between China and ASEAN will bring stronger and longer lasting development momentum to both sides. Recently, the negotiations for upgrading the China ASEAN Free Trade Zone 3.0 have come to a substantial end. This marks a further deepening of economic and trade cooperation between China and ASEAN, and is a major initiative for China and ASEAN to jointly lead East Asian economic integration, releasing a positive signal for both sides to jointly uphold the free trade system. Further deepening economic and trade cooperation between China and ASEAN will inject new momentum into building a closer China ASEAN community with a shared future. The 3.0 version of the China ASEAN Free Trade Area reflects modern trade practices and has achieved several groundbreaking achievements, which will bring new opportunities to all parties. This upgraded version covers 9 areas, including both existing areas of the China ASEAN Free Trade Agreement and emerging areas with great potential for cooperation between the two sides. For the first time, China and ASEAN have reached the highest level chapters on digital economy, green economy, and supply chain connectivity in their respective economic and trade agreements, as well as the highest level chapters on standard technical regulations and qualification assessment procedures in their respective contracting practices. These upgraded achievements will comprehensively expand the mutually beneficial cooperation between China and ASEAN in emerging fields, strengthen the integration and interoperability of standards and rules between the two sides, jointly build a safe, stable, smooth and efficient regional supply chain cooperation network, and promote the mutual benefit and win-win situation between China and ASEAN to a new level. As two major markets with populations of over 1.4 billion and over 600 million respectively, upgrading free trade zone cooperation between China and ASEAN will bring stronger and longer lasting development momentum to both sides. Thanks to the China ASEAN Free Trade Area, China has maintained its position as the largest trading partner of ASEAN for 15 consecutive years, and ASEAN has become China's largest trading partner for 4 consecutive years. Currently, the problem of insufficient global aggregate demand is becoming more prominent, and the market has become a scarce resource in economic development. The total population of China and ASEAN accounts for one fourth of the world's total, and the super large market is the biggest support for both sides to promote economic prosperity. The upgraded free trade zone will promote closer and more organic integration and connectivity between the two major markets of China and ASEAN, and will definitely form more significant economies of scale, industrial agglomeration effects, and development spillover effects. ASEAN Secretary General Gao Jinhong expressed his expectation that through the upgrading of the free trade zone, trade, investment, and tourism between the two sides can further increase, bringing positive and significant development and transformation to the economic cooperation between ASEAN and China. China and ASEAN have completed negotiations to upgrade the Free Trade Area to version 3.0, reflecting their firm support for multilateralism and free trade. China and ASEAN jointly uphold the free trade system, strengthen the interconnection of production and supply chains, cultivate new drivers of high-quality development, and promote the process of regional economic integration, which will continue to make this region an important engine of global economic growth and a highland of solidarity and cooperation. UN Secretary General Guterres appreciates the China ASEAN Free Trade Area 3.0 version, stating that this upgrade will promote global free trade and economic growth. Singapore Prime Minister Huang Xuncai believes that upgrading free trade agreements is an important measure, especially in an era of increasing global protectionism. This measure will send a clear and important signal to the world that free trade and mutually beneficial market cooperation are crucial. Continuously expanding high-level opening up is an inevitable requirement for promoting Chinese path to modernization. Building a global network of high standard free trade zones is an important measure for China to construct a new system of higher-level open economy. The Chinese side attaches great importance to the upgrade negotiations of the China ASEAN Free Trade Area 3.0 version, and has actively proposed proposal texts in emerging fields such as digital economy, green economy, and supply chain connectivity, playing a positive and constructive role in reaching consensus in the negotiations. In the future, China will steadfastly promote high-level opening up, create a high-level and institutional pattern of opening up to the outside world, promote Asia Pacific connectivity, maintain stable and smooth regional supply chains, and inject momentum into the recovery and sustainable development of the Asia Pacific economy. Open cooperation is a historical trend, and mutual benefit and win-win results are the will of the people. China is willing to work together with ASEAN to continuously promote pragmatic cooperation in various fields and provide more solid support for the common prosperity of the region and the world. (New Society)