APEC AIMS TO DEFEND FREE TRADE TO COUNTER PROTECTIONISM|APEC開幕 聚焦川普.自貿.中國擴張議題

The 24th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders Meeting opened on Nov 18th in Peru's Lima. Three major developments in international affairs loom large in this year's meeting. Namely, Donald Trump's election as the next President of the United States, free trade agreements under threat, and China's further expansion of its influence in the region. At the opening of the APEC Economic Leaders Meeting, Peruvian President Kuczynski remarked that global trade is stagnant and that countries must defend free trade to counter the rise of protectionism in Europe and in the United States. ==PEDRO KUCZYNSKI, Peruvian President== It is fundamental that world trade grow again, and that protectionism be defeated. As the host of the 24th APEC meeting, Kuczynski pointed out that Trump winning the US presidency and the UK leaving the EU are both indicative of the rise of anti-globalization and protectionism. However, the world must remember the historical lessons of the 1930s Great Depression. Trump has repeatedly said that he will cancel the TPP promoted by the Obama administration, and adjust the current US trade policy. This has put the 2016 APEC under a cloud. Meanwhile, China has been using the APEC to push for the Regional Economic Partnership Agreement - RCEP, and the Asia-Pacific Free Trade Area Agreement, or FTAAP, and will likely play a more crucial role in the regional economy. ==BEN FOX, AP reporter== We saw the APEC nations today agreed to keep working on a free trade agreement known as the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific. This is an important deal and that was backed by the Chinese government. It will encompass all 21 nations of APEC, and it would be a very big trade deal if it got done. More than 1,000 delegates from 21 APEC members attended the meeting. The 21 member economies cover 40% of the global population. Nevertheless, protests were seen on the streets of Lima as local Peruvians said that the APEC is just a big meeting for show and achieves little in boosting the economy and employment. TRANSLATED BY：CHRISTINA LIU 亞太經濟合作組織APEC，第24次非正式領袖會議，18號在秘魯首都利馬開幕。川普當選下屆美國總統所產生的衝擊，受到威脅的自由貿易協定，以及中國再次擴大的區域影響力，將成為本屆APEC的三大焦點。 秘魯總統庫辛斯基18號，在APEC非正式領袖會議登場之際，替本屆APEC定調，庫辛斯基指出，全球貿易呈現停滯狀態，各國必須捍衛自由貿易，來對抗歐美保護主義興起的趨勢。 ==秘魯總統 庫辛斯基== 全球貿易過去兩年停滯成長，已在全球產生衝擊，舉例來說，大型運輸業破產重整，以及各地的失業率，都是因為全球貿易的減緩。我認為這就是APEC期間必須要強調的議題，世界貿易再度成長是根本所在，保護主義必須被打敗。 庫辛斯基身為第24屆APEC的東道主，毫不諱言指出，川普當選美國總統以及英國的脫離歐盟，顯示反全球化的保護主義興起，但必須記取1930年代經濟大蕭條的歷史教訓。國際媒體分析，川普一再表示將推翻歐巴馬政府所大力推動的，跨太平洋夥伴關係協定TPP，調整美國目前的貿易政策，讓本屆APEC籠罩陰霾，而中國則將利用這次APEC，大力推動區域全面經濟夥伴關係協定RCEP，以及亞太自由貿區協定FTAAP，中國未來在區域經濟領域將扮演更關鍵的角色。 ==美聯社記者 福克斯== 我們已經看到APEC成員國同意持續努力完成自由貿協定，也就是已知的亞太自由貿易區協定，這是一項由中國所推動的重要協議，將涵蓋APEC的21個國家，一旦完成後將是一大貿易突破。 反APEC 祕魯民眾首都抗議 本屆APEC的21個成員國共有超過1000名代表與會，這21個成員國涵蓋了全球40%的人口，但祕魯當地民眾強調，APEC會議只是簽署協議的大拜拜，對提升經濟與就業根本毫無作用，並在利馬街頭舉行抗議。 記者 靳元慶 報導