With the 31st APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting and the 19th G20 Summit around the corner, China’s role at the two significant multilateral gatherings in bolstering the shared development of the Global South and accelerating global economic recovery has been highlighted by analysts.
“China’s presence helps enhance the voice and influence of Global South countries in multilateral platforms and promote global governance to develop in a more fair and equitable direction,” said Cui Shoujun, founder and director of the Center for Latin American Studies at the Renmin University of China.
Currently, trade protectionism is picking up, and the economic outlook for the world is bleak, while geopolitical tensions also cast a shadow on state-to-state relations, Cui noted.
“China has reaffirmed its commitment to multilateralism and united both developed countries and developing ones to seek solutions featuring win-win cooperation to problems emerging from global governance,” he said.
Established in 1989, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation is an intergovernmental forum for 21 member economies, aiming to facilitate economic growth, cooperation, trade, and investment in the Asia-Pacific.
Cui said that China could play its part in promoting economic integration in the Asia-Pacific through the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting by offering practical solutions to issues such as digital economy and green development, as well as strengthening willingness to cooperate among member countries.
As the premier forum for international economic cooperation, the G20 brings together the world’s major and systemically important economies, representing 85 percent of global GDP, 75 percent of international trade, and two-thirds of the world’s population.
“China has proposed to strengthen the voice and participation of developing countries in the international financial system through the G20, a gesture that has won the support of the majority of developing countries and is conducive to steering the global governance system in a more balanced and stable manner,” Cui said.
Noting that China and other Global South countries enjoy high growth potential and demographic dividends and have shared views in seeking development and justice, he said cooperation among those countries helps those countries build up resilience of industrial and supply chains and achieve goals of common and sustainable development, thus advancing the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.
