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APEC Summit Ends Without a Joint Communiqué
18 November 2018
EIRNS—Hours after U.S. Vice President Mike Pence made a fool of himself by issuing belligerent threats against China, the APEC summit in Papua New Guinea ended without the participants agreeing on a joint communiqué. P.N.G. Prime Minister Peter O’Neill said that the talks on the language of the communiqué broke down over how China’s relationship with the WTO should be characterized. The U.S., reports USA Today, "has adamantly opposed the way WTO treats China as a market-driven economy rather than one dominated by state-supported industries."
According to Reuters, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau admitted there were different visions on particular elements with regard to trade that prevented full consensus on a communiqué document. While the news reports don’t specifically cite the Chinese blaming Pence, he nonetheless continued his tirade against China to reporters traveling with him. They begin with trade practices, with tariffs and quotas, forced technology transfers, the theft of intellectual property. It goes beyond that to freedom of navigation in the seas, concerns about human rights, Pence said, reported Reuters. Pence is doing this at the same time that President Donald Trump himself has been more positive on the potentials of making a trade deal with China, particularly after China responded to a list of 142 demands sent by the U.S., though there were a few things China left off the list. Trump nonetheless expressed confidence, on Nov. 16, that a deal could be made. China responded to Pence’s sermonizing speech by advising "a certain country" that it shouldn’t engage in finger wagging and instead match words with deeds. "We suggest a certain country matches its words with its deeds, rather than wag the finger at others," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in the statement issued today, rpeorted Xinhua. "The country should treat all countries on an equal footing no matter big or small, respect other countries’ right of following a development path that accords with their own national conditions and make real contributions to developing countries." Hua stated that in his speeches to the APEC summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed that both inclusiveness and innovation, as well as rules-based approach, to cope with common challenge and achieve mutual benefits. "Upholding justice while pursuing shared interests and the principle of sincerity, real results, affinity, and good faith, China has contributed to the social and economic development of these countries within its capability," she said, referring to the cooperation that China has developed with many countries. She further said that this kind of assistance, with no political conditions attached, had fully respected the willingness of the recipient countries and their people. "There is not a single country getting into debt crisis due to its cooperation with China," Hua said, directly responding to Pence’s claim that the Belt and Road Initiative is a debt trap. "On the contrary, they have all improved the capacity of independent development and people’s livelihood so the cooperation with China is widely welcomed by vast developing countries and their people." [cjo] |
