Asia-Pacific countries look forward to building the next "golden 30 years" with China

□ reporter Wu Qiong

The 11th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting concluded in San Francisco, USA, on November 17, local time, and the meeting issued the 2023 APEC Leaders' San Francisco Declaration.

Under the APEC mechanism, the Asia-Pacific region has become an important growth pole of the global economy, and China is an important engine for the development of the Asia-Pacific region and the world. The Chinese leader attended the APEC summit and pointed out the direction of cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. The international community expects China to continue to play its role as a "powerhouse" and "stabilizer" of global growth.

Inject more impetus into Asia-Pacific cooperation

Reuters, RIA Novosti and other media recently pointed out in reports that the 30th gathering of APEC leaders is of great significance, injecting more impetus into Asia-Pacific cooperation and global economic recovery.

The theme of this year's APEC meeting is "Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All", which focused on topics such as sustainable development, digitalization, trade facilitation, energy security and food security, according to the Sputnik news agency. In line with the APEC Summit's Outcome Declaration, the Heads of Delegation to the Summit reaffirmed their commitment to keeping markets open and avoiding supply chain disruptions, including efforts to support businesses in building safe, efficient, sustainable and open supply chains for a predictable, competitive and digitally connected Asia-Pacific.

RIA Novosti said in an article entitled "APEC summit calls for the beginning of a new era of investment and economic growth" that the participants of the APEC summit reaffirmed the importance of the rules-based multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization (WTO) at its core, which will help continue to promote the rapid growth of the region.

The RIA Novosti report also said that APEC remains a catalyst for significant economic growth in the region.

Summing up the results of the summit, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk, head of the Russian delegation to the APEC summit, said that "this was a successful summit." Overchuk also believes that the APEC summit declaration will play an important role in the future development of trade relations and digital transformation of Asia-Pacific economies. "I think this declaration will play an important role in laying the foundation and boosting future work, including in the areas of climate change, digital transformation, strengthening cooperation and trade between economies in the Asia-Pacific region."

Japan's Kyodo News reported on the 19th that the APEC summit closed after the adoption of the leader's declaration, which proposed to "create a resilient and sustainable future for all", believing that "we are facing different economic issues than in the past".

Yonhap News Agency emphasized the importance of the rules-based trade order when reporting on the APEC summit, believing that APEC should play more leadership in restoring the multilateral trading system. Reuters and other media reported that the APEC summit reaffirmed the importance of the multilateral trading system based on the WTO, saying that it is "determined to create a free, open, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, inclusive and predictable trade and investment environment".

Chart the direction of cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region

On the occasion of the 30th gathering of APEC leaders, the Chinese leaders proposed to adhere to innovation-driven, open-oriented, green development, and inclusive sharing, promote the building of an Asia-Pacific community with a shared future with high-quality growth, and let people of all countries share the fruits of modernization.

A number of foreign media quoted Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, as saying that APEC is the highest-level, widest and most influential economic cooperation platform in the Asia-Pacific region. Thirty years ago, the APEC Leaders' Informal Meeting was launched in Seattle, helping the Asia-Pacific region become the center of world economic growth and the anchor of global development and stability. Thirty years later, China's leaders have revisited the original aspiration of the APEC mechanism on the West Coast of the United States, once again charting the direction and drawing a blueprint for Asia-Pacific cooperation.

In another article, the Russian Sputnik news agency quoted Marat Berdeev, a special envoy of the Russian Foreign Ministry and high representative for APEC affairs, as saying that Russia and China continue to maintain mutual trust and interaction in APEC, and the two sides have had close contacts and exchanged views at the current APEC summit held in San Francisco, USA.

Marat Berdeev also told the Russian Sputnik news agency that Russia believes that APEC is the core mechanism for deepening economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region and one of the key elements for strengthening the multipolar world order, in which China plays an important role.

China is an important engine for the development of the Asia-Pacific region

Against the backdrop of sluggish world economic recovery and increasing uncertainties, the Asia-Pacific region has become an important growth pole of the global economy, and China, as the world's second largest economy and the largest trading partner of many APEC members, is an important engine for the development of the Asia-Pacific region and the world. Before and after the APEC summit, overseas media paid close attention to China's performance as a major global economy, and generally expected China to continue to play its role as a "power source" and "stabilizer" of global growth.

Some foreign media have paid attention to the fact that China announced at the APEC summit that it will hold the second Global Digital Trade Expo, and announced that China will further reduce the negative list for foreign investment access, fully protect the national treatment of foreign-invested enterprises, and promote the orderly and free flow of data in accordance with the law, which is believed to send a strong signal of China's high-level opening up and boost the confidence of all parties to continue to cooperate with China.

A number of media outlets said in their reports that the declaration adopted at the meeting fully reflects China's ideas and propositions such as implementing the Putrajaya Vision, building an Asia-Pacific community, building an Asia-Pacific Free Trade Area, inclusive and sustainable development, and connectivity.

In 2022, the total import and export volume between China and APEC members was US$37390,8.59 billion, accounting for 7.8% of China's total import and export value. Eight of China's top 13 trading partners are members of APEC, and China is also the largest trading partner of <> APEC economies. International public opinion has praised China's efforts to promote regional prosperity and stability, promote free trade policies, and promote the sharing of development dividends among all countries, and hope that China will lead more in the process of regional economic integration.

In contrast, Singapore's "Lianhe Zaobao" pointed out with concern in an editorial about the APEC summit on the 21st: "It is foreseeable that free trade cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region still cannot escape the headwinds of American populism and trade protectionism." ”

At the critical juncture of the 30th anniversary of the first APEC Leaders' Meeting, the world can clearly see which countries adhere to the original aspiration of Asia-Pacific cooperation, openness, inclusiveness, mutual benefit and win-win results, and which countries go against the original aspiration and engage in geopolitical confrontation and "decoupling and breaking the chain". Asia-Pacific countries look forward to working with China to achieve more fruitful results in Asia-Pacific cooperation and jointly build the next "golden <> years" of the Asia-Pacific region.