Why Xi compares China's relationship with Asia-Pacific to "sweet potatoes"
This photo shows the logo of APEC 2024 in Lima, Peru, Nov. 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Mariana Bazo)
BEIJING, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to attend the 31st APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Lima, Peru, where leaders from across the Asia-Pacific will convene to chart strategies for shaping the region's future.
APEC gatherings, renowned for blending economic discussions with cultural exchanges, often feature leaders donning local attire for the iconic "family photo." This no-tie tradition is seen as a way to cut down on the formality that high-level meetings usually involve.
In these meetings, Xi's remarks showcase not only his eloquence but also his wit, vividly conveying his vision for Asia-Pacific cooperation. Over the years, his incisive words and catchphrases have offered fresh perspectives on advancing regional growth and fostering deeper collaboration among APEC members.
During the 2016 APEC gathering, also held in Lima, Xi used an analogy to describe the relationship between China and the wider Asia-Pacific region, comparing it to sweet potatoes, a food native to Latin America.
He explained that while the vines of sweet potatoes may stretch in all directions, they all grow out of their roots. "Similarly, no matter what level of development it may reach, China, with its roots in the Asia-Pacific, will always contribute to the region's development and prosperity."
That metaphor holds even truer today. Since joining APEC in 1991, China has become a key trading partner and export market for the majority of APEC members. According to China Customs, China's trade with APEC economies reached a historic high, surpassing 21 trillion yuan (about 2.92 trillion U.S. dollars) in the first 10 months of 2024, marking a 5.7 percent increase from the previous year and accounting for 59.1 percent of China's total trade.
In its efforts to promote free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific and beyond, China has reduced its overall tariff level to 7.3 percent.
"China cannot develop in isolation from the Asia-Pacific while the Asia-Pacific cannot prosper without China," the Chinese leader made these remarks when he debuted at the APEC stage in Bali, Indonesia, in 2013, highlighting the interconnected growth of the region.
Connectivity stands out as one key theme of Xi's vision for Asia-Pacific development. He once invoked a concept from traditional Chinese medicine to illustrate APEC cooperation: when there is free flow, there is no pain; when there is pain, there is no free flow. "Connectivity makes the economic arteries of the Asia-Pacific flow more smoothly," he explained.
During his 2013 trip to Indonesia, Xi proposed the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, a pivotal component of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and proposed plans for establishing the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank to support the BRI.
To date, more than half of APEC's 21 economies have engaged in Belt and Road cooperation, with signature projects like the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway in Indonesia and Chancay Port in Peru aiming to help strengthen trade networks and drive growth across the region.
"President Xi has put forward a series of proposals and initiatives to enhance Asia-Pacific regional cooperation, and the BRI is a major one to promote regional comprehensive connectivity," said Liu Chenyang, director of the APEC study center at Tianjin-based Nankai University.
"These efforts led by President Xi have also shown the world China's determination to take root in the Asia-Pacific and benefit the region in the long run," Liu said.
