Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday called for steadfastly advancing Asia-Pacific regional economic integration, breaking new ground in development and building an Asia-Pacific community with a shared future.
Xi made the remarks in a written speech at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit.
Xi advocated higher-level opening-up, higher-standard connectivity and stable and unimpeded industrial and supply chains. He opposed unilateralism, protectionism and the attempt to politicize and weaponize economic and trade relations.
In the speech, Xi said that cooperation within the APEC framework should be deepened, the building of a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific advanced and the Putrajaya Vision implemented in building an open Asia-Pacific economy.
Xi said both “hard and soft connectivity” should be boosted and personnel exchanged in a “well-ordered way” so as to build “a high-quality Asia-Pacific connectivity network.” He also urged convenient, efficient and secure industrial and supply chains.
Economic development should be “people-centered,” with people’s well-being ensured and the needs of vulnerable groups satisfied, Xi said.
In promoting economic upgrading, Xi said the APEC members need to “embrace the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, accelerate scientific, technological and institutional innovation, foster new economy, new types of business and new business models, and achieve the digital transformation of the Asia-Pacific economy.”
He also said that an “Asia-Pacific security architecture” should be built as the foundation for ensuring economic development and durable peace and stability in the region.
China’s leading role
Given the high stakes of this year’s meeting, the high expectations of the Chinese president’s attendance at the APEC leaders’ meeting and China’s role in regional economic cooperation are evident beyond the venues at APEC and on the streets of Bangkok.
Amid high temperatures in the Thai capital on Thursday afternoon, many local residents gathered on a street waving Chinese and Thai national flags to welcome Xi to the country and attend the APEC leaders’ meeting.
“Thai society has already been very much looking forward to this visit. Especially after three years of the COVID-19 pandemic, everyone is expecting President Xi’s visit to promote closer Thailand-China ties in political, economic and other areas,” a Thai citizen of Chinese descent named Ma Yan told the Global Times on Thursday, as she joined others to welcome Xi.
“The economic ties between ASEAN and China far exceed those with other economies. I hope this APEC meeting and President Xi’s visit can become an opportunity to restart exchanges between countries that have been stagnant due to the epidemic in recent years,” said Ma.
China, which is a major trading partner for many Asia-Pacific economies and a very important part of the regional industrial and supply chains, is widely expected to take a greater leading role in regional economic cooperation, as many regional economies are focused on development instead of geopolitical tensions, business leaders and analysts said.
“China is an important member of APEC. Since joining [APEC] 31 years ago, China has always advocated regional openness, and has always been committed to promoting trade and investment liberalization, facilitation, and economic and technological cooperation. It has played an increasingly important role in multilateral cooperation mechanisms such as APEC,” Gao Lingyun, an expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, told the Global Times on Thursday.
US’ relevance questioned
In stark contrast, the US has been constantly instigating geopolitical tensions and seeking to create division in the region in order to promote its own geopolitical agenda, while becoming increasingly irrelevant in promoting regional peace and development, analysts noted.
In a clear sign of this trend, US President Joe Biden, who had just attended the G20 leaders’ summit in Bali, Indonesia, decided to skip the APEC leaders’ meeting, as he reportedly returned to the US for his granddaughter’s wedding. The US is sending Vice President Kamala Harris to the meeting instead.
