WELLINGTON (Reuters) - Leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum vowed on Friday to address economic recovery in the region by shoring up supply chains, tackling labor issues and continuing to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
They also pledged to work together to address climate and environmental challenges, they said in a statement following their meeting in Wellington, New Zealand.
China’s President Xi Jinping on Friday told fellow APEC leaders that economic and technological cooperation is important for the bloc and should receive further investment, Chinese state media reported.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Joe Biden pledged to deepen United States ties with APEC countries, including advancing fair and open trade as well as investment in the region, and urged action to shore up the environment and global health.
“Biden reaffirmed our interest in serving as a strong, reliable partner to APEC economies as we pursue sustained and inclusive growth,” and “discussed ways to unleash the economic power of the region and to deepen U.S. economic engagement throughout the Indo-Pacific,” said a White House statement following his remarks to the APEC leaders’ meeting.
Speaking via video link at the APEC leaders’ summit, Xi also said China would “unswervingly” expand its opening up to the outside world and share China’s development opportunities with the world and Asia-Pacific countries, state broadcaster CCTV said.
The summit of the Pacific Rim countries comes amid heightened regional trade and geopolitical tensions, particularly between China and the United States.
It comes ahead of a much-anticipated online summit between Biden and Xi expected on Monday, as the superpowers look to prevent growing tensions between the world’s two biggest economies from spiraling toward conflict.
China set the tone for the 21-member APEC meeting this week, with Xi warning in a video recording on Thursday that the region must not return to the tensions of the Cold War era.
The comment was seen as a reference to efforts by the United States and its regional allies to blunt what they see as China’s growing coercive economic and military influence.
Xi took the virtual podium a day after China’s ruling Communist Party approved a rare resolution that amplified his status and authority, bolstering the likelihood he would secure an unprecedented third leadership term next year.
APEC is the last multi-lateral meeting of the year and comes after a flurry of gatherings including the high-profile Group of 20 summit in Rome and the COP26 climate meeting in Glasgow, Scotland.
The leaders’ statement made no mention of a U.S. offer to host the gathering in 2023. Officials have said a consensus had not been reached on this proposal.
The APEC summit will be held in Thailand next year.