| Abstract: | Had it not been for the COVID-19 pandemic,Auckland, New Zealand's most populous city, would have been a busy place this month. Leaders, ministers and business communities from the 21 economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), including China, the U.S. and Russia, would have been gathering there to discuss the development and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region.Instead, New Zealand, which currently holds the rotating presidency, has decided to hold all of this year's APEC meetings online, drawing together representatives from 11 time zones.APEC, established in 1989, is the highest-level intergovernmental economic cooperation platform in the region. This year also marks the 30th anniversary of China's joining the alliance. While addressing the 28th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting on November 12, Chinese President Xi Jinping said, It has been three decades of deepening reform and opening up for China, and of broadening economic cooperation across the Asia-Pacific. |
