China, Southeast Asia and the Belt and Road Initiative: Developing Legal Tools for Doing Business and Their Digital Support

Southeast Asia: Actual Problems of Development. 2025. Vol. 3. No. 3(68). P. 25–37.

Kanaev E.

The article explores by what legal tools and their digital support the People’s Republic of China (PRC) shapes the business landscape in Southeast Asian through the prism of its strategy to develop the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). On exploring major directions of China’s policy in Southeast Asia and assessing the interim results obtained, the author proceeds to systemizing the legal tools of the Belt and Road Initiative and revealing their development in the digital space to finally turn to specifying their implications for doing business in Southeast Asia. The paper argues that Southeast Asia is a prime testing ground for the PRC to implement its legal tools, including those in the digital space, aimed at supporting the BRI. The novelty of the article stems from its research focus that is on the intersection of economic, business and legal fields, which makes the research an interdisciplinary exercise. The relevance and the practical significance of the research account for the establishment of the ASEAN Community 2025 and the finalization of ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) 3.0 with prospects for further increase in China’s influence in the region. With those factors in view, the article contributes to expanding academic knowledge on the ASEAN integration model through the prism of its dialogue with external partners, exemplified by China. Although there is no dearth of papers focusing on ASEAN’s policy, especially in the year of the establishment of the ASEAN Community 2025, the article stands out due to its multidisciplinary component as a foundation of its academic and practical value added.

Keywords: China, integration, Southeast Asia, digital support, legal tools