The Center for ASEAN and China Studies (CACS) was set up in Vietnam on Tuesday to help strengthen the two sides' comprehensive relations.

The center, whose activities are coordinated by the Vietnam Social Science Institute, will be an important forum for scholars from China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to put forth initiatives to their countries' leaders when they map out related policies, the institute's Chairman Do Hoai Nam said at the center's inauguration ceremony.

"The Chinese government attaches great importance to the center 's establishment initiated by Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai," Chinese Ambassador to Vietnam Qi Jianguo said at the ceremony.

"We hope that the center will implement various activities to enhance the understanding and trust between China and ASEAN, helping deepen their strategic partnership," Qi said.

The all-round ties between China and ASEAN, which groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, will enter a new development stage between 2006 and 2020, when the block speeds up construction of the ASEAN Community, he said.

China and ASEAN members will attend a seminar titled "China's Development and Prospect of ASEAN-China Relations" slated for December 20-21 in Vietnam.

(Xinhua News Agency December 20, 2005)