Huanqiu.com retraced President Xi Jinping’s APEC proposals and presented this year’s Shenzhen informal leaders’ meeting, hosted by China, under the theme of building an Asia-Pacific community. Views differ among economies.
In a piece titled ‘From Asia-Pacific Partnership to Asia-Pacific Community’, Huanqiu.com lays out in chronological order the proposals Xi Jinping has made at successive APEC leaders’ meetings. It describes APEC as the region’s highest-level and broadest economic cooperation mechanism, and says unilateralism, protectionism, slowing globalization and technological change such as artificial intelligence are testing the region.
광고 문의 · 300×250By the article’s figures, the Asia-Pacific accounts for about one-third of the world’s population, over 60 percent of global GDP and nearly half of world trade. It also says per-capita income has more than quadrupled since APEC’s founding and about 1 billion people have escaped poverty. These are figures from Chinese media, and the text does not explain how they were calculated.
The Arc of Xi’s Proposals
Huanqiu.com cites the Asia-Pacific partnership and the FTAAP process put forward in Bali in 2013 and Beijing in 2014, the 2040 community goal of the 2020 Putrajaya Vision, the stress on innovation-driven and green growth in San Francisco in 2023, and five proposals on trade, supply chains and inclusive development in Gyeongju in 2025. Beijing presents these as one continuous line of thinking.
On regional integration, the article points to RCEP’s entry into force, saying more than 90 percent of intra-regional goods trade is moving toward zero tariffs, and also mentions the CPTPP, the DEPA and the upgrade protocol of the China-ASEAN free trade area. In digital and green fields it cites the 2025 Chengdu ministerial meeting on digital and AI issues and green energy projects in Thailand, Chile and Fiji.
China hosts APEC for the third time in 2026, and the 33rd informal leaders’ meeting is to be held in Shenzhen under the theme ‘Building an Asia-Pacific Community, Promoting Common Prosperity’, with openness, innovation and cooperation as priorities. Huanqiu.com presents Shenzhen as a symbol of China’s reform and modernization and quotes praise from figures including former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
Other Perspectives
This is, however, the account of a mainland outlet with an official orientation. The United States and some Western countries have been cautious about how China-led economic concepts fit with existing rules, and some analysts say smaller regional economies prioritize balance amid great-power rivalry. The coverage did not report specific reactions from individual economies.
Whether the ‘community’ idea turns into concrete agreements in Shenzhen depends on reconciling differences among members. What APEC can deliver amid trade friction and supply-chain realignment will be the thing to watch.
