Thailand to stress sustainability at Asia-Pacific summit

BANGKOK (AP) — Leaders from the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum begin a two-day summit in Thailand’s capital on Friday with a crowded backdrop of issues to contend with: the war in Ukraine, great power rivalry in Asia, and the global crises of food and energy shortages, inflation and supply chain disruptions.

“It is clear that this has been an eventful and challenging year on many fronts,” said Thani Thongphakdi, permanent secretary of Thailand's Foreign Ministry. “The entire APEC region, along with the global economy, is still reeling from the effects of COVID-19 and recovering amidst ongoing economic woes, tensions and crises that have affected all aspects of our lives.”

While APEC leaders grapple with these pressing issues, Thai officials are hoping to steer them toward long-term solutions.

“What we are going to do is to have all economies agree on a set of targets ... climate change mitigation, sustainable trade and investment, environment resources conservation and, of course, waste management,” said Cherdchai Chaivaivid, director-general of Thailand’s Department of International Economic Affairs. “This is the first time that APEC is going to talk about this. This is the first time that we are going to open a new chapter in how trade, business, investment should be done.”

Established in 1989, APEC’s official mission is to promote regional economic integration, which means setting guidelines for long-term development of a free trade area. Most of its work is technical and incremental, carried out by senior officials and ministers, covering areas such as trade, tourism, forestry, health, food, security, small and medium-size enterprises and women’s empowerment.

The private sector is also a major player, with the APEC Business Advisory Council...