APEC’s political background and perceptions in the Chinese media

BEIJING - With the Asia-Pacific region’s heads of state set to convene in Beijing this weekend, many editorial voices in the Chinese media have published reflections on the past, present and future of geopolitics and trade in Asia-Pacific.

China’s Global Times wrote of its optimism in regards to the “reciprocal usefulness and benefit” between APEC and the EU, citing such common interests as the protection of personal data, the principle of multilateralism, and a “rather similar” economic agenda in that both regions have prioritized boosting innovation and growth, starting new infrastructure projects and creating quality jobs, especially for the young generation. “To sum up,” the article writes, “organisations such as the EU and APEC can share a global agenda looking toward the future.”

On a slightly less cooperative level, an editorial from China Daily writes of an apparent “race” between the US and China to be the first to announce plans of a regional free trade agreement. While the US has been working on a Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and China a Free Trade Agreement for Asia-Pacific (FTAAP), the two are locked in a competition to “dominate the rules-setting game for trade,” since pursuing one plan could potentially derail plans for the other (or so the editorial says). www.webershandwick.cn (ATI).