With the theme of "Open, Connect, Balance," the 29th APEC Economic Leaders' 
Meeting kicked off on Friday, in Bangkok, which is the first such in-person 
meeting since 2018.

The voice of China is in the limelight as the country's membership of APEC has 
not only boosted its own development but also greatly contributed to the 
regional and world economies. 

Highlighting that the Asia-Pacific is "our home as well as the powerhouse of 
global economic growth," Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed building an 
Asia-Pacific community with a shared future when delivering a speech during 
Friday's meeting.

Asia-Pacific community with a shared future

"Today the world has come to another historical crossroads, and this has made 
the Asia-Pacific region even more important and prominent in its standing and 
role," Xi said.

Calling for joint efforts in building an Asia-Pacific community with a shared 
future, he stressed several aspects — peace and stability, prosperity for all, 
cleanliness and beauty, and a shared future.

He also underlined upholding international fairness and justice, adhering to 
openness and inclusiveness, seeking green and low-carbon development, and being 
committed to cooperation so as to reach the goal.

The region's status is of great significance in the world. With a combined 
population of 2.9 billion, the 21 APEC economies account for over 60 percent of 
the world's total gross domestic product (GDP) and about half of world trade.

APEC is working on areas such as trade and investment liberalization, business 
facilitation, and economic and technical cooperation, aiming to achieve 
sustainable growth and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.

In the latest Regional Economic Outlook Report for Asia and Pacific, the 
International Monetary Fund (IMF) lowered its growth forecasts for the 
Asia-Pacific region to 4 percent this year and 4.3 percent next year, by 0.9 
and 0.8 percentage points, respectively, from its April forecasts.

Despite the growth cut, Asia remains a relatively bright spot in an 
increasingly dimming global economy, said Krishna Srinivasan, director of the 
IMF's Asia and Pacific Department.

China committed to regional partnerships

Since joining APEC 31 years ago, China has been firmly committed to regional 
partnerships and free trade and investment, making significant contributions to 
a multilateral trading system and an open world economy.

"China will work with other parties on the full and high-quality implementation 
of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)," Xi told the APEC 
meeting.

The country will continue working toward joining the Comprehensive and 
Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Digital 
Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA), he added.

The RCEP, the world's largest free trade deal, covers 10 member states of the 
Association of Southeast Asian Nations and its five free-trade agreement 
partners: China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia and New Zealand. China 
was among the first to ratify the RCEP agreement last year.

Both the RCEP and CPTPP are believed to be viable pathways toward the wider 
Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP), which the 21 APEC members aim to 
establish.

China will consider holding the third Belt and Road Forum for International 
Cooperation next year to provide fresh impetus for the development and 
prosperity of the Asia-Pacific and the world, according to the Chinese 
president.

Echoing the theme of the 2022 APEC, Beijing has promised a high-standard 
opening up with the fifth China International Import Expo in Shanghai yielding 
great results earlier this month.

Tentative deals with a total worth of $73.5 billion were reached during the 
import-themed event, a testament to China's gigantic market and numerous 
business opportunities.

As the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China last month set 
the blueprint for the country's development for now and beyond, the president 
also stressed that Beijing will advance a broader agenda of opening up across 
more areas and in greater depth.

He underlined that following the Chinese path to modernization, the country 
will build new systems for "a higher-standard open economy," and share 
development opportunities with the world, particularly with the Asia-Pacific 
region.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-11-18/China-stresses-Asia-Pacific-community-in-addressing-global-challenges-1f3LalyTRGU/index.html


SOURCE CGTN