APEC Year 2017: A Comprehensive Success

The comprehensive success of APEC Year 2017 can be seen from the organization and chairing of events to reception, infrastructure, logistics, culture, communications to security and heath care.

The APEC Economic Leaders’ Week from November 6 to 11 was one of the few of its kind to be attended by leaders of all 21 member economies over the last decade. This showed their commitment and resolve to the APEC forum and the Asia-Pacific region. More than 21,000 delegates took part in the 243 activities held during the APEC Year 2017 in Vietnam. The APEC Economic Leaders’ Week alone attracted about 11,000 delegates, reflecting the world and the region’s great attention to APEC.

The most important outcome is that APEC continues its economic cooperation and connection impetus, brings into play its role as the leading economic connection mechanism of the region, keeps its core value of trade and investment liberalization, and supports multilateral trade. This year’s outcomes created an important foundation for future APEC cooperation. Eight major documents were passed, particularly the Da Nang Declaration and the joint statement of the APEC Ministerial Meeting. For the first time, APEC agreed to promote economic, financial and social inclusion and innovative startups. APEC leaders also set major plans for APEC cooperation until 2020 and beyond so as to work towards an APEC for people and businesses, help to build an Asia-Pacific community of peace, stability, dynamism, inter-connectivity and prosperity, and uphold APEC’s leadership in coping with new challenges.

ASEAN’s outstanding attainments and central role were highlighted during the year. The APEC leaders convened the first-ever dialogue with all 10 ASEAN members, aiming to enhance coordination in promoting regional growth and economic connectivity.

By hosting the week and the APEC Year 2017, Vietnam has obtained all major targets, including improving the country’s role and stature in the international arena, strengthening its relations with other APEC economies, connecting Vietnamese enterprises with APEC firms, and popularizing its development and business potential. The hosting helped Vietnam carry out the foreign policy of diversifying and multi-lateralizing foreign relations, integrating into the world, and boosting the effectiveness of multilateral diplomacy, with the goal of ensuring peace, stability and favorable conditions for national development.

Vietnam made use of APEC activities to bolster ties with major partners. On the occasion of the APEC Leaders’ Week, Chinese Party General Secretary and President Xi Jinping, US President Donald Trump and Chilean President Michelle Bachelet paid state visits to Vietnam. Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made an official visit. These were historic trips during which strategic agreements were reached, heralding new chapters for Vietnam’s relations with partners. During the week, local leaders also held more than 50 meetings with leaders of partner countries. Vietnam signed 121 cooperation agreements worth nearly 20 billion USD in total. Many partners like Russia, China, Laos, the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea and New Zealand also gave assistance in different forms (in total of 9 million USD) to support flood victims in the central region hit by typhoon Damrey.

During the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week, Vietnam advertised its potential and opportunities for development, economy, trade, investment, services and tourism. Notably, the APEC CEO Summit attracted a record of over 2,000 businesses, including some 1,300 foreign firms. The Vietnam Business Summit drew about 2,200 businesses, including 850 Vietnamese companies.