Global media focus｜Spanish think tank: Shenzhen APEC meeting provides new opportunities for global cooperation

The 33rd Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Informal Leaders’ Meeting will be held in Shenzhen soon. On November 3, Spain's China Policy Observer published a signed commentary article "Shenzhen and the Battle for the Future of Globalization" by Julio Rios, founder of the think tank Institute of International Studies in Galicia and an expert on Asian issues. He analyzed in detail the significance of this meeting in the context of the global economy facing geopolitical tensions and rising protectionism, and pointed out that China, as the host, provides an important opportunity for all parties to discuss cooperation and promote openness and common development.

The article mentioned at the beginning that it is of great significance for China to serve as the host of APEC. Because China is an indispensable participant in addressing common global development issues. The article believes that the theme proposed by China for this year's APEC meeting is "Building an Asia-Pacific Community and Promoting Common Prosperity", with priorities including openness, innovation and cooperation. The agenda covers key areas such as trade integration, connectivity, artificial intelligence, digital transformation, clean energy and inclusive development. The article said that APEC has 21 members and accounts for an important share of global production and trade. If all parties can reach a pragmatic agreement, it will be of great significance in today's situation where global multilateralism is facing severe challenges.

The article believes that the advancement of economic integration does not require all parties to compromise or make concessions in their interests, but is based on the common interests of all parties. Deepening the construction of the Asia-Pacific Free Trade Area, improving regional connectivity and eliminating unnecessary trade obstacles are the general trend and benefit all parties. The key is to find the best balance - while maintaining market openness and effective competition, complying with transparent rules, and taking into account the security concerns of each economy, and improving the ability to prevent and resolve external shocks.

The article mentioned that choosing Shenzhen as the venue for this conference has profound symbolic meaning. Since the establishment of the special economic zone in 1980, this former border town has transformed into an internationally renowned industrial, commercial and technological innovation center. Its rise vividly demonstrates China's unique path to achieving leapfrog development through pilot system innovation, continuous expansion of investment, improvement of infrastructure, and deep integration into the global market.

The article believes that innovation and green transformation are the common interests of all parties, and the rise of China is injecting important impetus into global development. With its solid industrial foundation and economies of scale in fields such as electric mobility and renewable energy, China has effectively reduced the cost of promoting green technologies and greatly accelerated the low-carbon transformation of the global energy system. At the same time, it is imperative to deepen international cooperation on issues such as data security, system interoperability and artificial intelligence governance. The article calls on major countries to avoid blind confrontation, avoid closing the space for cooperation that benefits the world, jointly promote green transformation, popularize digital technology, and give full play to the role of artificial intelligence in empowering productivity, so that scientific and technological innovation can truly benefit the international community.

The article concludes by arguing that the unique value of APEC is that it is not a political alliance and does not require ideological unity, but provides a platform for different economies to transcend strategic differences and seek convergence of interests. As the host of this year's event, China is proving through concrete actions that competition between major powers does not have to become a zero-sum game, and one country's development does not need to be at the expense of other countries. When the innovative breeze of Shenzhen blows away camp barriers, APEC will once again show the world that the future of global economic governance does not have to be mutually exclusive, but can lead to shared prosperity.

Source | Headquarters Global Information

Compilation｜Gao Jiayi