Nearly 10 years have passed since the official establishment of China-ASEAN Free Trade Area(CAFTA)on January 1,2010.Across its 10 years of operation,CAFTA has played an increasingly important role in supporting trade and investment between China and ASEAN and bolstering the Belt and Road Initiative as it provides valuable experience for China to build more free trade areas(FTAs).China’s First FTA with Foreign Partners In the 21st Century,China has accelerated implementation of its FTA strategy by gradually building a high-standard global network of FTAs.China built its FTAs from scratch,and is now working on 20 FTAs which involve 32 countries and regions.It has signed 14 free trade agreements with 20 countries and regions.CAFTA was the first FTA built by foreign partners alongside China.