APEC Adopts Joint Declaration Xi Jinping: Asia-Pacific Economies Should Strengthen Mutually Beneficial Cooperation

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said that leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) smoothly reached consensus on trade and investment issues at their meeting in Gyeongju, South Korea.

On the conclusion of the second phase of the 32nd APEC Informal Leaders’ Meeting on the 1st, Lee Jae-myung announced that the attending APEC leaders have adopted three agreements, including a joint declaration.

The joint declaration points out that the Asia-Pacific region is at a critical turning point and acknowledges that the global trading system still faces major challenges. The declaration expresses support for efforts to ensure supply chain resilience but does not mention multilateralism or the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The APEC summit proposed an artificial intelligence (AI) initiative, stating that AI has huge potential in advancing solutions to common priority issues within the APEC region. APEC economies should step up efforts to create a favorable environment for investment in resilient AI infrastructure.

The two-day 32nd APEC Informal Leaders' Meeting was held October 31 to November 1 in Gyeongju, South Korea.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on the 1st emphasized that Asia-Pacific economies should strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation, seize new opportunities, and address new challenges by working together in areas such as artificial intelligence, green and low-carbon development, and inclusive sharing.

On the morning of the 1st, Xi Jinping delivered remarks at the second phase of the APEC summit. He stressed that with insufficient momentum in global economic growth, a widening global development gap, and intensifying challenges such as climate change, food and energy security, Asia-Pacific economies should strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation, seize new opportunities, and confront new challenges.

In his remarks, Xi Jinping put forward three recommendations, which include artificial intelligence, green and low-carbon development, and inclusive sharing.

The first is to "strengthen digital and intelligent empowerment to shape new advantages for Asia-Pacific innovative development"; the second is to "adhere to green and low-carbon growth to create a new model for Asia-Pacific sustainable development"; the third is to "implement inclusive sharing to showcase a new spirit of inclusive development in the Asia-Pacific."

He said that it is imperative to fully harness the driving and enabling role of new technologies, seize the opportunities of digitalization, intelligent transformation, and green development, accelerate the nurturing and development of new quality productive forces, and ensure that artificial intelligence brings significant benefits to the people of all nations and regions in the future.