The outcomes of the APEC Year 2017 have demonstrated that APEC has continued confirming its position as a leading regional economic cooperation mechanism with high levels of dynamism and adaptability in a constantly and rapidly changing world. As Vietnam has successfully hosted the APEC 2017 Summit Week, it has become a focus of the international press and media in the past week.
2017 is an important year for APEC as it is in the final phase to accomplish the Bogor Goals on free trade and investment by 2020. Meanwhile, APEC is facing a number of obstacles to the process of globalization and economic connectivity.
These facts have required APEC economic leaders, particularly the host, to unite efforts to steer the APEC engine onto the right track while gearing up all facets of APEC processes.
Vietnam makes a hallmark in APEC Year 2017. Photo for illustration
Against this backdrop, various initiatives have been proposed and a number of agreements have been reached during the APEC 2017 Summit Week. That APEC economic leaders showed their strong political resolve and APEC economies were ready to accept more commitments has also demonstrated that APEC is really trying its best to create a new driving force for growth and to build a regional community in the Asia-Pacific region with economic dynamism, social inclusion and stable security, serving all people and businesses in the region and shaping the future of the world in the 21st century.
Another success of the APEC 2017 Summit Week is that its events attracted a large number of major international organizations, namely the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank (WB), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Large corporations and high-profile commentators and analysts also participated in events and actively contributed to the success of the APEC 2017 Summit Week.
During the APEC Year 2017, APEC member economies, particularly the host, proposed a large number of initiatives to implement the Bogor Goals and promote new economic cooperation models in accordance with the fourth industrial revolution. This has demonstrated that APEC continues to play well its role in initiating and promoting cooperation and connection as well as confirming its ability of converging minds of the region and the world.
APEC is one of the regional forums that has brought the most practical benefits to Vietnam. Among the 21 APEC member economies, 13 are Vietnam’s strategic or comprehensive partners and several are leading economic and trade partners with Vietnam, while 18 APEC members already signed bilateral or multilateral free trade agreements with Vietnam. APEC member economies account for 78% of the foreign direct investment in the country, 75% of its total trade volume, 38% of the official development assistance (ODA) for the country and 79% of the international visitors to the country. For these reasons, Vietnam considered the hosting of the APEC Year 2017 central to its foreign affairs policy in 2017 and it made strenuous efforts to contribute its part to the success of the APEC 2017 Summit Week and other APEC events during the year.
Multilateral cooperation mechanisms in the world have faced various big challenges and obstacles and APEC is not an exception. Despite this, Vietnam has still successfully fulfilled its role as the host of APEC Year 2017 while wisely and efficiently using the organization’s cooperation principles of unanimity, voluntariness, non-binding options, equality and mutual benefits to reach agreements on various areas of cooperation. The international opinion also highly valued the role of Vietnam as the host of APEC Year 2017 and other APEC member economies have elicited new momentums for regional economic growth and connectivity.
Although this year’s APEC cooperation agenda has been mainly inherited from the previous years’ agenda, Vietnam has successfully added some new elements to it, in accordance with the current situation. This should be seen as Vietnam’s significant contribution to APEC, as these supplemented contents aim at increasing APEC’s adaptability to a changing world with intensive impacts of the fourth industrial revolution and various arisen challenges.
Vietnam’s successful hosting of the APEC Year 2017 has reflected the foreign policy articulated in the Resolution of the 12th Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam, directing that the country should improve the quality and efficiency of its multilateral relations, and actively and proactively shape, develop and contribute to multilateral mechanisms. This will also refuel it in completing its WTO commitments by 2018, promote its confidence to take the Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2020 and stand for a non-permanent member seat at the UN Security Council in the 2020-21 term.
Besides hosting the APEC Year 2017, Vietnam’s leaders also welcomed several State leaders on their official visits to the country, particularly Chinese Party General Secretary and President Xi Jinping, and US President Donald Trump, and had a number of bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the APEC Summit Week with leaders of APEC member economies. These meetings will definitely contribute to strengthening its bilateral relations and cooperation with these countries. During the APEC Year 2017, especially the APEC Summit Week, Vietnam has tried to promote its image as a peaceful, innovative, dynamic and hospitable country in the eyes of international friends in the hope that both international corporations and people will understand more about Vietnam and see Vietnam as an attractive destination for both business and tourism.
The APEC Year 2017 already officially closed but Vietnam has surely left a deep and positive impression on international friends. In fact, many APEC economic leaders and other delegates spoke highly of Vietnam’s efforts in professionally organizing the APEC Summit Week and leading APEC to the overall success.
Written by Editorial Board
Translated by Thu Nguyen