Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung attends 37th APEC Ministerial Meeting
WVR - On November 3, within the framework of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum, the 37th APEC Foreign and Economic Ministers' Meeting was held online.
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| The 37th APEC Foreign and Economic Ministers' Meeting was held online. (Photo: Bao Chi) |
The meeting was co-chaired by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao, with the participation of Foreign Ministers, Economic and Trade Ministers, and Heads of Delegations from 21 APEC member economies.
The meeting also saw the attendance of the Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat, the Chair of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), and representatives from international and regional organizations. Vietnamese Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung and Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Luong Hoang Thai led the Vietnamese delegation at the meeting.
This is the most important ministerial meeting of the year to discuss major regional economic issues, review the cooperation results of the year, and prepare content for the 33rd APEC Summit in Shenzhen, China. The meeting focused on two major topics: Cooperation towards an Asia-Pacific community and promoting economic integration for regional growth.
Amidst ongoing global economic instability and challenges to trade, investment, and supply chains, the meeting emphasised the need for enhanced cooperation and solidarity among members, strengthening the multilateral trading system, maintaining an open, stable, and predictable trade and investment environment; promoting the process of building the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP), enhancing regional connectivity, removing bottlenecks, and building resilient supply chains.
The Ministers also discussed measures to promote innovation, digital transformation, and the application of artificial intelligence (AI) to improve productivity and competitiveness; support small and medium-sized enterprises, develop human resources and digital skills; enhance cooperation to ensure food security, energy, sustainable resource management, and improve the resilience of economies.
The meeting also reviewed five years of implementing the APEC 2040 Vision Action Plan, discussing measures to enhance APEC's operational efficiency, laying the foundation for promoting cooperation in the coming years.
In this spirit, many members expressed interest and expectations for Vietnam's APEC Year 2027, hoping that Vietnam will continue to build on its achievements, promote practical cooperation initiatives, and create new momentum for regional economic integration and growth.
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| Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung speaking. (Photo: Bao Chi) |
Speaking at the meeting, Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung praised the organization and the role of China as the host of APEC 2026. Recognizing that the Asia-Pacific region is entering a period of profound economic and technological transformation, with both opportunities and challenges, the Minister emphasised that APEC needs to play a proactive and pioneering role in shaping the future through strategic cooperation.
Accordingly, Minister Le Hoai Trung proposed three strategic directions for the region. Firstly, to build an innovative and productive Asia-Pacific region by promoting the responsible and effective application of AI and digital technology, creating a conducive environment for research and development, developing a regional innovation network, and human resources with skills to meet future demands.
Secondly, to build an open and connected Asia-Pacific region, facilitating the flow of goods and services, addressing supply chain bottlenecks, enhancing institutional, infrastructure, and digital connectivity, and promoting people-to-people exchanges.
Thirdly, to build a resilient and dynamic Asia-Pacific region, focusing on cooperation to ensure food security, energy, sustainable resource management, and enhancing resilience to external shocks; while also strengthening policy coordination and enhancing capacity to respond to emerging risks, contributing to maintaining sustainable regional growth.
The Minister emphasised that, as the host of APEC 2027, Vietnam is ready to closely collaborate with member economies, build on the cooperation achievements, and continue to promote increasingly substantive and effective APEC cooperation, aiming to build an open, dynamic, resilient, and peaceful Asia-Pacific community.
