Asia-Pacific integration

China shows sincerity about regional cooperation at APEC meeting and is ready to contribute more to economic progress

The 20th informal meeting of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation economic leaders wrapped up on Sunday in Vladivostok.

Although US President Barack Obama did not take time away from his busy election campaign to attend the event this year and Australian Prime Minister Julia Eileen Gillard returned home before it was all finished, the "big family" gathering attracted a lot of attention from the international community.

The event brought notice not only to APEC's development, which has been going on for 20 years, but also Russia's ambition to develop its Far East region.

The meeting also gave China an opportunity to put forward a series of proposals and ideas related to the event's theme: "Integrate to Grow, Innovate to Prosper".

President Hu Jintao, in a keynote speech at the APEC CEO summit, placed emphasis on the need to improve infrastructure construction and promote stable growth and economic recovery. China has worked to establish fair, transparent and efficient administrative, legal and market systems.

As a responsible rising power, China has promised to maintain economic stability and strong economic growth by stimulating domestic demand and rebalancing its domestic economy to help the global economy recover. At the same time, China is committed to quickly putting into effect its free-trade plans, strengthening its economic ties with its chief trade partners and cooperating more in a pragmatic way with other emerging and developing economies. This suggests that China has tied its economic development to regional and global economic stability and prosperity.

China's views on regional cooperation were fully demonstrated during the APEC meeting. The country intends to maintain its commitment to open regionalism, to respect the reality of the coexistence of multiple mechanisms in the Asia-Pacific region and to advocate for ensuring that the various mechanisms have the maximum amount of compatibility and collaboration.

To promote regional cooperation, China also plans to organize more exchanges with the Greater Mekong Subregion; the Greater Tumen Initiative; the Association of Southeast Asian Nations; ASEAN plus China, Japan and the Republic of Korea; the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and other regional mechanisms.

China has also emphasized the need to promote economic development and improve people's livelihoods, and put a priority on social construction projects that concern people's most direct and practical interests.

During this year's APEC meeting, talks between China and Russia have shown that the two countries want to have a conjunction point that will have complex and far-reaching effects on the future geopolitical and geo-economic situations of Northeast Asia and East Asia.

APEC is mainly a forum for discussions on global trade liberalization, rather than a place to solve the various territorial and border disputes that are taking place among countries in the region. Also at the event, Hu met with APEC leaders from Vietnam, Indonesia, Brunei and Japan and discussed various matters of controversy.

Speaking to Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, Hu said China-Japan relations have recently taken a turn for the worse over the Diaoyu Islands issue; China holds a consistent, clear stance on the issue: Whatever means Japan tries to use to "buy the islands" will be illegal and invalid and China is firmly opposed to such a purchase. The Chinese government is firm in its commitment to protect its territorial sovereignty; Japan must fully recognize the gravity of this situation and avoid any wrong steps. He called on Japan to work with China to develop the two countries' relations.

And while meeting with Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang, Hu acknowledged that relations between China and Vietnam have also been strained by territorial disputes in the South China Sea, an outcome that China has wanted to avoid. Hu said the countries should put into effect the agreement reached at the consultation and avoid acting in ways that might aggravate, complicate or internationalize the disputes. Both countries should try to prevent the South China Sea issue from affecting East Asia cooperation and regional stability.

During meetings with leaders from Indonesia and Brunei, Hu said the South China Sea issue is a chronic headache and all the countries involved in it believe it will be in their common interest to properly deal with the issue through talks and consultations. China is ready to work with ASEAN countries to put into effect the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, advance practical cooperation and maintain peace and stability in the region.

APEC, though, has not yet achieved full and effective operation. For the foreseeable future, APEC will still find it difficult to perform a large number of functions, especially those related to security.

The author is a research scholar with the Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies affiliated to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.