Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday outlined four expected achievements of the ongoing Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported from Beijing.
"The first achievement will be the launch of the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP) process, which points out the direction for Asia-Pacific cooperation," Xi was quoted as saying when speaking at the dialogue between APEC leaders and representatives of the APEC Business Advisory Council.
"The second achievement will be the issuance of a statement on the 25th anniversary of the APEC, which draws on past experience and sketches out the future vision," he told the gathering.
"As the third achievement, the meetings will promote innovation, reforms and growth to seek new momentum for long-term development of the Asia-Pacific. Fourthly, a blueprint will be made to lay a solid foundation for all-round connectivity in the Asia-Pacific," said the Chinese president.
Noting that the Asia-Pacific faces both significant opportunities and various uncertainties, Xi urged the APEC to "add firewood to the fire of the Asia-Pacific and world economy." Commenting on the FTAAP, Xi said it does not go against existing free trade arrangements, which are the potential pathways to realize the FTAAP goals. The FTAAP can be the "aggregation" of existing free trade arrangements, and the aim of pushing forward the FTAAP process is to consolidate the regional integration and define long-term goals, the president noted.
He also hailed the moves of setting up the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and building the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, saying they will benefit all parties.
APEC groups Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, the US and Vietnam. The 21 APEC members account for over half of the world's economic output, 40 percent of the world's population, and 46 percent of total global trade.