Chinese President Xi Jinping called Tuesday for APEC leaders to take "action" to move forward with a China-backed free trade agreement, despite reported resistance from the United States, which is seeking another regionwide free trade deal.
"We should jointly charter the course for future development," Xi said in his speech at the opening session of the APEC summit.
"The future development of the Asia-Pacific is vital to interests of every APEC member."
Citing last week's agreement by APEC foreign and trade ministers to launch a feasibility study for the China-backed Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP), Xi said, "Having reached an important consensus on starting the FTAAP process ... What we should do now is translate the consensus into action."
Leaders of the 21-member APEC, including South Korean President Park Geun-hye, U.S. President Barack Obama and Xi, gathered at a scenic lakeside resort outside Beijing on Tuesday for the final day of the two-day summit.
Obama and 11 other APEC leaders called Monday for the swift conclusion of a U.S.-backed regional free trade agreement, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), while Xi sought to push ahead with the FTAAP.
During the APEC summit, Obama expressed his "desire to make this agreement a reality. We're going to keep on working to get it done," describing the TPP as "the model for trade in the 21st century."
"Agreements like this will benefit our economies and our people. But they also send a strong message that what's important isn't just whether our economies continue to grow, but how they grow; that what's best for our people isn't a race to the bottom, but a race to the top," Obama said.
"Obviously, ensuring the continued growth and stability of the Asia-Pacific requires more than a focus on growing trade and investment," Obama said.
South Korea has been considering joining the TPP talks that include Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam.
Still, Park said at the APEC summit that she supported the adoption of a road map to create the FTAAP, according to her office.
"I am confident that the APEC would develop into an Asia-Pacific economic community based on the Beijing road map for the realization of the FTAAP," Park said in a speech at the session. "To do that, South Korea will actively participate in joint efforts."
China is seeking to speed up the creation of the sprawling FTAAP, even though the world's second-largest economy is reluctant to open up its own market dominated by state-run companies.
The idea of creating the FTAAP has been discussed for many years at the annual APEC gatherings, but China has stepped up diplomatic efforts in recent months to make it a formal agenda item, a move seen as bolstering its economic clout in the region.
The push by China for the FTAAP is likely to meet resistance by the U.S. and some APEC members, which have made efforts to seal a 12-nation free trade deal, the TPP, which currently excludes China.
In a separate session, Park proposed that APEC member states introduce a transportation card that can be used across the region as part of efforts to enhance regional connectivity.
Launched in 1989, APEC is mainly aimed at boosting trade among its members, but its focus has expanded to geopolitical tensions.
Park and Obama plan to hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the APEC gathering later Tuesday, with North Korea's nuclear and missile programs expected to top the agenda.
Xi and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held their first bilateral summit on Monday, in an ice-breaking meeting that could serve as a chance to thaw ties. (Yonhap)
