21st century belongs to the Asia-Pacific – Xi Jinping

The region shouldn’t become an “arena for a big power contest,” the Chinese president says

Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday that the Asia-Pacific area was “no one’s backyard,” urging for greater regional cooperation on development and security. Xi’s statement was made in written remarks to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Thailand and released shortly after he arrived there.

“The Asia-Pacific … should not become an arena for a big power contest,” Xi said, adding that, “No attempt to wage a new cold war will ever be allowed by the power or by our times.”

According to him, any attempt to disrupt or even dismantle the industrial and supply chains formed in the Asia-Pacific over many years will only lead the region’s economic cooperation to a dead end.

“The 21st century is the Asia-Pacific century … We, members of this region, have come a long way in pursuing economic development, and we will surely write an even more brilliant chapter in the years ahead,” Xi stressed.

The Chinese leader put forward a six-point proposal in this regard, namely bolstering the foundation for peaceful development, taking a people-centered development approach, pursuing greater levels of openness, striving for higher-standard connectivity, building stable and unimpeded industrial and supply chains, as well as promoting economic development.

The Asia-Pacific region accounts for around 60% of the world's population and almost 50% of global economic output. One of the fastest-growing parts of the world, it is widely viewed as a hub of global trade.

According to last month’s report by the S&P Global Market Intelligence, Asia-Pacific economies will dominate global growth in the upcoming year. S&P predicted the region will achieve real growth of roughly 3.5% in 2023, while Europe and the US will likely face recession.

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