I. Introduction

The importance and challenges of building a China-ASEAN community with a shared future are discussed. Since President Xi Jinping proposed the initiative, significant achievements have been made in China-ASEAN economic and trade relations, but the index of security trust has not improved correspondingly. ASEAN countries worry that U.S.-China competition threatens their status and security, while the U.S. leverages ASEAN to counterbalance China. Western media amplify the South China Sea crisis, creating discourse traps. Strategic communication significantly influences state behavior, and Chinese scholars emphasize its alignment with national strategies and goal-oriented nature in localized interpretations. Academic research focuses on constructing a strategic communication system with Chinese characteristics and U.S. strategic communication studies, but there is limited research on strategic communication for the China-ASEAN community with a shared future. This paper explores discourse challenges and traps in building the China-ASEAN community and how to address them from a strategic communication perspective. Domestic research remains insufficient, primarily due to a lack of analysis on adapting to the communication ecology of the digital era and attention to cognitive differences among diverse audiences.

II. Current Status of China-ASEAN Community with a Shared Future and Discourse Traps

The construction of the China-ASEAN community with a shared future, as a crucial framework for regional cooperation, has achieved notable results in political mutual trust, institutional cooperation, economy, security, and culture. The two sides have established a comprehensive dialogue and cooperation mechanism at various levels, including leaders, ministers, and senior officials. In 2021, they established a comprehensive strategic partnership, and in 2022, the China-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Action Plan (2022–2025) was issued. Economically, the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA) has become the most exemplary institutional public good for South-South cooperation globally, with Chinese investments in ASEAN upgrading local infrastructure and creating jobs. In security, China and ASEAN countries promote peaceful resolution of South China Sea disputes through multilateral dialogue, maintaining regional stability, and forming a multi-dimensional cooperation framework in non-traditional security fields. Culturally, China and ASEAN have built a multi-layered cooperation framework, enhancing cross-cultural exchanges and deepening mutual understanding and cultural identity through people-to-people exchanges.

However, the construction of the China-ASEAN community with a shared future faces multiple discourse traps in ideology, economy, security, and culture. The ideological discourse trap includes the widespread dissemination of the "China threat theory," affecting the stability and direction of regional cooperation. In trade and economy, narratives like the "debt trap theory," "economic trap theory," and "investment trap theory" attempt to politicize China's economic actions, influencing ASEAN countries' strategic recognition and policy support for China. In geopolitics, disputes over South China Sea sovereignty are exploited by some countries to internationalize the issue and intensify strategic confrontation with China. In culture, the "cultural infiltration theory" surrounding language cooperation centers politicizes normal cultural exchanges and educational cooperation, hindering China-ASEAN cultural collaboration.

These discourse traps create cognitive biases that obstruct the progress of bilateral cooperation projects and constrain the deepening of the China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership. China must counter various "sovereignty claims" through effective communication strategies, safeguard its legitimate rights in the South China Sea, and contribute to regional peace and development by advancing the China-ASEAN community with a shared future.

III. Roots of Discourse Traps and Countermeasures from a Strategic Communication Perspective

From a strategic communication perspective, this section explores the roots of discourse traps in building the China-ASEAN community and proposes countermeasures. The emergence of discourse traps is closely tied to structural contradictions in the international public opinion arena, including great-power geopolitical competition and inefficiencies in China's strategic communication system. The "China threat theory" propagated by Western media and "communication misunderstandings" due to linguistic and cultural differences are primary roots of discourse traps. While China and ASEAN have strengthened bilateral cooperation in political and economic interactions, friction has also increased, exacerbated by Western countries' negative portrayal of China. The linguistic, cultural, and value diversity among ASEAN members leads to varying interpretations of the shared future concept, affecting information dissemination and strategic trust-building.

Strategic communication offers advantages in the China-ASEAN community with a shared future, including clear goal orientation, systematic information delivery, targeted audience engagement, and long-term influence. It enhances communication efficacy, addresses discourse power imbalances, fosters collective identity, optimizes regional governance, and maintains regional stability. Strategic communication focuses not only on short-term delivery effects but also on long-term impact, mitigating the negative effects of discourse traps.

Specific strategic communication approaches include constructing a precise policy communication system, proactive media guidance, optimizing multilateral exchange mechanisms, strengthening strategic communication with ASEAN countries, building a multi-dimensional communication network, and fostering a favorable atmosphere for China-ASEAN cooperation. Additionally, engaging with international media, addressing concerns promptly, and collaborating with local ASEAN media can leverage localized communication advantages. These measures effectively dismantle cognitive barriers set by Western media, deconstruct Western-centric narrative hegemony, correct distorted international public opinion, and support the construction of the China-ASEAN community with a shared future.

IV. Conclusion

The achievements of the China-ASEAN community with a shared future initiative are highlighted, along with challenges amid changing international dynamics. Three key measures to counter discourse traps from a strategic communication perspective are proposed: strengthening agenda-setting capabilities to promote China's foreign policy concepts; deepening cooperation with international media to enhance ASEAN countries' policy recognition; and building an information countermeasure system to improve efficacy against disruptive factors. These measures help China seize discourse initiative in building the China-ASEAN community, advance the comprehensive strategic partnership, and jointly create a higher-level community with a shared future.