중국의 동남아 경제협력 현황과 시사점(China and Southeast Asia: Expanding Economic Engagement)

Korean Abstract: 중국은 동남아의 최대 교역상대국이자 주요 투자자로서 역내 경제적 영향력을 크게 강화하고 있고, 일대일로(一帶一路) 전략하에 적극적으로 동남아 인프라 개발도 확대하고 있다. 한국이 중국의존도를 줄이기 위해 동남아 등 다른 지역과의 관계강화를 꾀하는 것과 같이 동남아 역시 중국의존도를 완화하기 위해 경제관계 다각화를 원하고있다. 한국은 이러한 상황에서 동아시아의 전체적 발전을 위해 어떻게 동남아와 상호협력하며 호혜적인 방식으로 협력을 강화할 수 있는지 고민해야 할 것이다. English Abstract: In the past decade, China has emerged as a key partner of Southeast Asia across trade, investment, and infrastructure development. Southeast Asian economies have significantly benefited from the strong economic growth of China over the years, but the resulting dependency on China has created political and economic vulnerability in the region. The challenge is how to steer these relationships toward more mutually beneficial ones. Korea needs to respond to the changing economic landscape in Southeast Asia proactively and constructively. China’s deeper engagement in Southeast Asia may place competitive pressures on Korean business interests, yet China’s expanding business networks and China-financed infrastructure improvement are likely to offer more business opportunities for everyone, including Korean firms. Korea needs to make greater efforts in the fields of innovation and productivity enhancement, in addition to paying greater attention to labor and environmental standards compliance in its FDI and infrastructure development, taking lessons from some of the backlashes against China’s investment activities. Finally, Korea and Southeast Asia have mutual interests in diversifying their economic relations away from over-dependency on China, as recent economic and security events have clearly suggested.