Responsible regional role

The fourth disaster relief exercise of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum, with the participation of 21 members including China and eight international and regional organizations, aims to promote regional security governance based on a "common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable" security perspective.

The series of natural disasters that have occurred in Asia in recent years, from the destructive earthquake in Japan and the typhoon disaster in the Philippines to the fresh water crisis in Maldives and the recent earthquake in Nepal, shows the extent of non-traditional security risks in Asia, underscoring its need for a common security consciousness and cooperative spirit.

Disaster relief is an area to which ARF members have attached great importance and where they have conducted pragmatic cooperation. The biennial disaster relief exercise, in particular, has effectively boosted regional countries' capabilities to deal with risks and challenges. China's voluntary participation in such regional cooperation is an indication of its willingness to participate in regional security and its capability for this purpose.