There are two important political events taking place in the world these days that should certainly not escape our attention. Lima, Peru is hosting the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Community (APEC) leaders' meeting, while Rio de Janeiro, Brazil is hosting the G20 summit. Both organisations are important players in the emerging multipolar world and, together with the BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, will shape the rules of the new international order. The South American summits will take place in the presence of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Fighting for free trade and cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region
Both APEC and the G20 currently have 21 members. Together, APEC members account for nearly two-thirds of global GDP and half of world trade and are linked by their geographical proximity to the Pacific Ocean. Therefore, the world's two largest economies, the US and China, cannot be missing among them, as well as a host of other influential players ranging from Russia to Indonesia. The presence of the United States of America and China gives this format an absolutely crucial importance. The relationship between these two countries is, to a large extent, determining the future development of world politics and the economy.
The election of Donald Trump as president of the most powerful country in the Western world will most certainly mean the strengthening of protectionism in the economy and unilateralism in politics. And it is APEC that, since its founding in 1989, has made it a point to promote free trade in this key region. In this context, let us recall that the Republican leader used his first presidential mandate to withdraw from the Transpacific Partnership, the emerging project of the world's largest free trade area. Trump thus made way for China, which, together with fourteen Pacific states, successfully created the Regional Economic Partnership (RCEP) a few years later.
A few days after his election in November, the incoming president announced his intention to leave the Paris Agreement, which 196 countries joined in 2015. It is an important international basis for a green transformation of the world economy and successful adaptation to climate change. It is no coincidence that these points are among the priorities of the Peruvian APEC summit. In addition to discussing a just energy transition linked to sustainable growth and resilient development, participants are focusing on innovation and digitalization as a tool to build an inclusive globalization with equal participation of all countries in the world economy.
Last but not least, removing barriers to trade, creating a transparent and open economic environment, and the imperative of shared prosperity are central to China's economic and foreign policy. In view of the rise of a Republican administration in the US, the growing threat of trade wars between Washington and the rest of the world, including the European Union, and the risk of geo-economic fragmentation warned of by the International Monetary Fund, for example, the negotiations of multilateral organisations such as APEC and the G20, and China's role in them, are of paramount importance.
Fighting against poverty, for sustainable development and fair governance
The G20 brings together 19 countries, along with the European Union and the African Union, which became a member last year. As a result, this platform represents the vast majority of the world's population and production. Even if we count only 19 sovereign states, we arrive at a figure of around 85% of global GDP and 75% of global trade. The G20 began to play an important role after the global economic crisis at the end of the first decade of this century and enjoys considerably greater popularity in the world than the G7, mainly because it represents the interests of the world's majority, rather than those of a minority, as is the case with the G7.
This year, the G20 is chaired by Brazil, whose global influence is growing thanks to its membership in BRICS. With the November summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil's presidency will come to a head. The Latin American country's central themes are the fight against hunger, poverty and inequality, sustainable development, a just green transformation, as well as global governance reform. According to the World Health Organisation, as many as 733 million people suffered from hunger last year and there is a real risk of failing to achieve the elimination of hunger by 2030. Similarly alarming figures apply to the number of people living in extreme poverty. China has made unprecedented achievements in this regard, having eradicated extreme poverty from the country, thereby making a significant contribution to global human rights development.
Beijing has taken a similarly constructive approach to reforming global governance, enjoying the support of most countries around the world. Few today doubt that the system of international institutions is in need of fundamental reform because its current form reproduces structural inequalities and hinders the realisation of common development and shared prosperity. In this respect, the G20 is an appropriate platform for seeking consensus across regions. Although the current presidency will not reach consensus on a fairer and more effective form of global governance, the debate is ongoing and a gradual transformation of the international order in the political and economic spheres is objectively inevitable.
Global initiatives and European strategic autonomy
The APEC and G20 summits are being held with the active participation of President Xi Jinping. China attaches great importance to both organisations and considers them to be an important instrument for building an inclusive globalisation and a just multipolar world. The active participation of the Chinese side demonstrates its principled support for multilateralism, free trade and openness, which contrasts with the protectionist tendencies of some Western actors. The latter tend to solve their own socio-economic problems and loss of legitimacy in the eyes of the people by fomenting geopolitical conflicts in an attempt to contain the growth of new centres of economic and political power beyond the borders of the Western community.
In contrast, China is coming up with global initiatives to ensure universal and indivisible security, sustainable and common development as well as equality among civilizations and sovereign states and win-win cooperation among them. Worthy of mention in this context is the joint China-Brazil peace plan of May this year, which is a constructive and realistic contribution to the settlement of the security crisis in Eastern Europe. This was followed in September by a concrete step in the form of the creation of the Friends of Peace group at the UN, which more and more countries are interested in joining.
Among them is Slovakia, whose prime minister made a multi-day trip to China in late October and early November. The newly concluded strategic partnership between the two countries will strengthen Slovakia's sovereign foreign policy and will bring a significant boost to the country's economic development and modernisation, similar to Hungary or Serbia. While the Slovak and Hungarian political elites are building strategic autonomy, the Czech Republic is stalling in place and relying on unilateral dependence on Western partners.
However, the hesitation of the Czech Foreign Ministry to prepare a document on the revision of relations with China or the November visit of representatives of the Ministry of Industry and Trade to Beijing indicate that even the current liberal government is not interested in severing relations with China. However, we will probably have to wait for a real turn for the better. A sovereign foreign policy or strategic autonomy does not mean much to the cabinet of Petr Fiala.
PhDr. Ladislav Zemanek, Ph.D., historian, Russianist and international relations analyst
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