APEC Forum to Discuss Food & Energy Security, Sustainable Growth Amid Challenging Global Agenda
A man cycles past a sign of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022. 
The two-day 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (AFEC) forum starts on 18 November in Bangkok, Thailand, with the main themes of the forum this year being ‘Open. Connect. Balance’.Leaders from the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum are set to discuss issues of regional trade, investment and economic integration at closed-door sessions on 18 and 19 November in their first in-person meeting in four years.The agenda of the events started off with an APEC chief executive summit under the theme ‘Embrace, Engage, Enable’. Focusing on topics ranging from inclusive growth and development, to innovation, food security, digitalization, and gender equity, the meeting on Thursday witnessed Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha tout the importance of joint regional efforts to achieve sustainable growth in the face of global challenges.Ways to achieve economic recovery and sustainable growth are to top the agenda of the 29th APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting, which kicks off on Friday.Accounting for close to 40 percent of the world population, an estimated half of global trade and more than 60 percent of the global gross domestic product, APEC unites Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States and Vietnam.
Who is Attending & Who is Absent?
The United States is represented in Bangkok by Vice President Kamala Harris, as President Joe Biden is skipping the event, reportedly due to family reasons. Initially, Biden had been on schedule to arrive in Bangkok for a day to take part in the APEC meeting after attending the G20 summit on the Indonesian island of Bali from November 15-16. However, the 46th POTUS flew back to Washington right after the summit in Indonesia.VP Harris will reportedly rehash the typical Washington rhetoric regarding China at the gathering, according to an administration official cited by the media. Standing in for Biden, the US Vice President will purportedly seek to rally APEC members under the United States’ ‘economic leadership in the region’ while slamming China’s alleged ‘debt-trap diplomacy.’ Washington has long been accusing Beijing of seeking increased political leverage by ostensibly purposefully lending to countries that it knows cannot repay the money. In response, China has vehemently rejected the unfounded claims which it said were being wielded by the US to discredit it.Furthermore, in her address set for Friday at the APEC CEO Summit on November 18, Kamala Harris is to push forward a US-conceived economic agenda for the region, including the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework – a 14-nation initiative, spearheaded by Washington.”The central message of her remarks will be that the United States has an enduring economic commitment to the Indo-Pacific, and there is no better partner for the economies and companies of the Indo-Pacific than the United States of America,” the administration source was cited as saying.
AmericasBiden Will Not Attend APEC Summit in Bangkok Due to Family Reasons – Reports25 September, 00:05 GMTFollowing the conclusion of the APEC leaders’ meetings, Harris will reportedly have a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister of Thailand on Saturday.Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the G20 summit in Indonesia due to a tight schedule and also will not address the APEC summit participants in a video message, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier.“The decision of the president was connected with his tight schedule, and with the need for his presence in Russia,” Peskov said.
Keynote Meetings
One of the keynote meetings on the sidelines of the APEC Summit will be between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, with focus on relations between Asia’s two largest economies, as well as international and regional issues of mutual interest, according to China’s Foreign Ministry. “China and Japan are close neighbors and important countries in the region … The two sides need to respond to the trend of the times, stay committed to peace and friendship, expand mutually-beneficial cooperation, manage differences well, and work together to build a China-Japan relationship that meets the call of the new era,” China’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.The General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party is also reportedly expected to meet with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on the sidelines of the forum. Ardern had indicated earlier that said she would raise with Xi issues pertaining to trade, the economy and climate change “but also areas of differerence. And that is utterly consistent with New Zealand’s position”. “China has a relationship in the Pacific that goes back many, many years. Our concern is the nature of some of that engagement, like the potential for militarisation in our region,” Adern had added. Reports suggested that the New Zealand Prime Minister would restate her country’s concern about China’s actions over Taiwan, Hong Kong, and in the South China Seas.
Goals & Statements
While there has been no clarity regarding whether the APEC forum will issue any specific post-summit declaration, the attending leaders have worked out a joint statement on Thailand’s proposed “Bangkok Goals” on BCG (Bio-economy, Circular Economy and Green Economy). Thailand had proposed the Bangkok Goals as part of APEC 2022’s priority of “Balance in All Aspects to accelerate APEC’s efforts towards sustainability through the BCG Economy concept.”The document is tailored to advance APEC‘s sustainability agenda by achieving four goals:Climate action, including net zero greenhouse gas emissionsSustainable trade and investmentSustainable management of resources, conservation of the environment and biodiversityResource efficiency and sustainable waste management.The draft joint statement is to be proposed to the APEC ministerial meeting Thursday for approval, with the APEC Summit expected to offer final endorsement on Saturday.
