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China, Southeast Asia Set Aside Mistrust to Fight Deadly Virus

Ralph Jennings

   TAIPEI - China and 10 Southeast Asian countries are linking up to fight
   a deadly coronavirus outbreak that's threatening tourism and trade
   ties.

   The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a negotiating bloc
   with members that dispute Chinese maritime sovereignty claims and worry
   about the pace of Chinese investment abroad, signed a healthcare
   resolution with China February 20. The two sides agreed to accelerate
   information exchanges, combat any fake virus-related news and support
   small businesses that are hobbled by the outbreak.

   China and ASEAN are "major tourist destinations" for each other with
   annual travel exceeding 65 million visits, the bloc said in a
   statement. China is also ASEAN's largest trading partner. ASEAN is the
   second largest trading partner of China.

   "This is a good occasion to promote solidarity among countries in the
   region," said Eduardo Araral, associate professor at the National
   University of Singapore's public policy school.

   "It's unfortunate that it would have to take a virus to bring ASEAN and
   China together," he said, but "that's a good pause for the politics as
   usual in the region."

   The coronavirus discovered in December in the central Chinese city
   Wuhan is spreading world wide.

   China is the hardest hit, but ASEAN nations report smaller caseloads,
   especially in Singapore. The outbreak has led to the cancellation of
   thousands of flights, flattening tourism in parts of Southeast Asia
   that depend on foreign travel. Work stoppages in China this month also
   weakened Chinese manufacturing supply links in Southeast Asia.

   Action plan

   Foreign ministers from China and the Southeast Asian countries resolved
   at the February 20 meeting in Laos to step up sharing of information
   and best practices "in a timely manner" while pressing for common
   people to get accurate information rather than "fake news," the parties
   said in a statement.

   Any discovery in treating the disease, formally called COVID-19, should
   be shared, the statement adds. "If anything, I think Singapore of
   course with its medical advances and so on would be in a better
   position, but of course Singapore itself is also afflicted with the
   outbreak," said Oh Ei Sun, senior fellow with the Singapore Institute
   of International Affairs.

   They further agreed to rely more on cross-border training to stop any
   new disease threats. Small companies hurt by business losses caused by
   the outbreak will get ASEAN-China help in doing internet promotions,
   the resolution says. People are going out less often than usual in much
   of Asia to avoid catching the disease but still place orders online.

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