Regional cooperation recipe for success

Besides, the increasing problems caused by climate change are of high concern to both organizations. In fact, members of both APEC and G20 have included green and sustainable growth in their multilateral cooperation strategies.

Indeed, Australia, host of the G20 Summit, has pledged to support the Beijing-promoted Free Trade Area for the Asia-Pacific and AIIB, which will boost APEC-G20 synergies. Yet the demand imbalance in developed and developing economies is still a cause for concern for both groups. In promoting connectivity, for example, advanced economies pay more attention to institutional connectivity while developing ones focus more on "hardware" connectivity such as railways and roads.

Moreover, both the G20 and APEC, which used to prioritize economic cooperation, are beginning to take on the extra responsibility of dealing with political and security issues. And since the extra function requires better regional and global governance, it poses a challenge to many members, especially the major powers, in regard to strategic deployment.

China's role at the APEC and G20 meetings is expected to make a world of difference. The country's leaders have visited many countries, especially China's neighbors, to promote economic ties and help resolve difficult issues. Also, by leading or hosting several major transnational events, including the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia in May and the APEC conference, Beijing seems more pragmatic and determined to push for the co-existence of different regional cooperation mechanisms.

But Beijing should be aware that its every diplomatic move could evoke a strong response from some countries. In other words, overly active diplomacy is very likely to be interpreted as "Chinese hegemony", which seeks to alter the existing regional order.

To let its accomplishments speak louder, therefore, China should keep on contributing to global governance. Nevertheless, one thing is for sure, the regional cooperation in the Asia-Pacific is irreversible, and China remains committed to it.

The author is a researcher at the National Institute of International Strategy, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.