Leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum wrap up talks on Saturday, as host Thailand seeks to focus the 21-member grouping on how to respond to economic challenges such as opening up trade and slamming the brakes on inflation.
The summit is the third in the region attended by global leaders in the past week, and the talks have often been overshadowed by geopolitical tensions ranging from the war in Ukraine to flashpoints such as the Taiwan strait and the Korean peninsula.
At the start of a leaders' retreat on Saturday, Thailand's Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha sought to bring back the focus on economic issues and said the group had made "significant progress" by agreeing a multi-year work plan for a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific . In a joint statement on Friday, APEC ministers pledged to keep supply chains and markets open, noting some members had condemned the war in Ukraine.
Russia is a member of both G20 and APEC but President Vladimir Putin has stayed away from the summits. First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov is representing him at APEC.North Korea carried out the missile test just an hour before the APEC forum opening and Harris met to discuss it with leaders from Australia, Japan, South Korea, Canada and New Zealand.
Harris briefly met Xi on Saturday, a White House official said, adding that she had emphasised the importance to "maintain open lines of communication to responsibly manage the competition between our countries." Prayuth on Friday urged summit participants to seek sustainable growth and development after economic and social challenges from COVID, climate change and geopolitical rivalries.
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