CCTV9英语新闻：CICA: A young but special organization（在线收听）

CICA is a very young organization, set up in 1992. Its first summit was in 2002. CICA is the only multilateral security mechanism that covers almost all of Asia. To date, there are 26 member countries, including China, India, Russia Kazakhstan, Iran and Israel.

CICA is different from other security mechanisms which are commonly dominated by super powers. It has the characteristics of an “Asian initiative,” which values equality among members, and is led by small countries.

So, why is it so important to China? President Xi Jinping is a strong advocate of the forum. At the 2014 summit, he proposed what he called the “New Asia Security Concept.” The idea is to establish “common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security in Asia.”

Under the “One Belt, One Road” initiative, China aims to promote cooperation in trade and economy. How to strengthen economic ties and step up trade and investment will be key during the talks. The CICA Summit gives China an opportunity to promote regional exchanges to address both security demands and economic ties.