From May 23rd to 25th, 2018, the 13th Annual Meeting of Deans and Directors of Diplomatic Training Institutions of ASEAN+3 was held in Beijing. China Foreign Affairs University invited representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and diplomatic training institutions in Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam to attend the meeting. Qin Yaqing, president of CFAU, Zhou Ding, Deputy Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lan Heping, vice president of the China Diplomatic Training Institute, Wang Fan and Sun Jisheng, vice presidents of CFAU, and Wei Ling, China national coordinator of the Network of East Asian Think Tank (NEAT), attended relevant events.

In accordance with the South Korea Conference Agreement in 2016, when one of the three countries including China, Japan, and Korea host the meeting, a trilateral cooperation meeting among China, Japan and South Korea will be held. On the afternoon of May 23rd, president Qin Yaqing of CFAU, vice president Lan Heping of the China Diplomatic Training Institute, Ambassador Naoko Saiki of the Institute of Foreign Affairs of Japan, and Mr. Chongsuk Park, Minister of Planning and Evaluation of the Korean National Academy of Foreign Affairs, attended the cooperative meeting. After full exchanges and consultations, the three parties reached a number of consensuses and initiatives on diplomat training and cooperation.

On the morning of May 24th, President Qin Yaqing delivered a speech at the 13th Annual Meeting of Deans and Directors of Diplomatic Training Institutions of ASEAN+3. President Qin pointed out that peace, development, cooperation, and win-win situations are the guidelines for maintaining friendly relations with neighboring countries in Asia. The 10+3 cooperation mechanism has injected new vitality into the cooperation and development of ASEAN and East Asia. The meeting will further promote the sharing of diplomats’ training information and resources, vigorously promote the development of East Asian regional cooperation in a more pragmatic and stable direction, and promote the establishment of closer and more efficient partnerships among all parties concerned. Deputy director Zhou Ding attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech. He pointed out that the foundation for building the East Asian Economic Community is in the private sector. He advanced that we should let the ASEAN’s 10+3 Deans’ Conference Mechanism play its role in educational and people-to-people exchanges, and strive to promote 10+3 cooperation to achieve greater development,

During the conference, the delegates discussed the following four topics: new challenges, methodological innovation, new models and the establishment of cooperative mechanisms for diplomat training (development and construction of common courses).

Ambassador Naoko Saiki presented the first topic, “New Challenges for Diplomat Training.” Phimpha Keomixay, deputy dean of the Lao Foreign Affairs College, and Chongsuk Park, Minister of Planning and Evaluation of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, also presented speeches, respectively. Deputy dean Keomixay pointed out that diplomats need not only to cultivate diplomatic business abilities, but also to improve information technology and language skills. Minister Chongsuk Park discussed measures to address new challenges of diplomat training including practical lessons, targeted training, and diplomacy assessment systems.

The second topic, “Methodological Innovation in Diplomatic Training”, was presided over by Dr. Yiseang Chhiv, Deputy Secretary of State for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cambodia. Vice president Pham Lan Dung introduced how to increase the enthusiasm of diplomats to participate in training, such as increasing interaction, using new assessments and credit systems. Dean Chua of Singapore introduced methodological innovations in Singapore adopted by young diplomats after the 1980s—role-playing, policy simulation, and scenario games. Director Mulyana of Indonesia introduced 11 methods for training diplomats, such as skills to respond to media questions, video blogs, and blog exchanges.

The third topic, “The New Model of Diplomatic Talent Cultivation”, was presided over by Professor Wei Ling. Vice president Lan Heping introduced the diplomat training model with Chinese characteristics, which include features such as equal emphasis on testing and evaluation, multi-level training, targeted diplomatic training platform construction, and a credit system incentive mechanism. Ambassador Kethergany of Malaysia gave four training suggestions on establishing an electronic diplomacy and online course system, establishing a cloud database, and establishing contact with non-governmental organizations. Ambassador Cristobal of the Philippines shared concrete measures for responding to the new challenges of diplomat training, such as the use of high-tech tools and platforms, regular inspections, and the establishment of experience exchange learning groups.

Dean of the Philippine Diplomatic Academy, Ambassador Claro Cristobal presented on the fourth topic, “Construction of cooperative mechanisms for diplomat training (development and construction of common courses).” The deputy director of ZawPhyo Win in Myanmar proposed the establishment of shared teachers and courses to cooperate in the exchange among experts, teachers and students. Vice president Sun Jisheng introduced the basic situation of the undergraduate and diplomat training course system as well as the online course construction in our college, and put forward cooperation suggestions on future concrete cooperation road maps.

In the final part of the meeting, Ambassador Claro Cristobal, dean of the Philippine Diplomatic Academy, announced that the 14th Annual Meeting of Deans and Directors of Diplomatic Training Institutions of ASEAN+3 will be held at the Vietnam (or Laotian) Diplomatic Academy. President Qin Yaqing made congratulatory remarks regarding the successful conference and delivered a speech. He pointed out that profound and fruitful discussions had been carried out and many valuable and operational suggestions had been put forward at the meeting, which effectively deepened pragmatic cooperation among the parties. It is hoped that ASEAN and the diplomatic colleges of China, Japan and the ROK will continue to deepen cooperation in the future, promote friendly relations and build a better Asia.

The event was strongly supported by the leaders and relevant departments of our university. Thanks go to the College Office, the Asian Institute, the China Center for Foreign Affairs Theoretical Studies, and the Research Office for their strong support.