APEC China 2014
APEC China 2014 Delegates
Host countryChina
Date10–12 November
Venue(s)International Conference Center, Beijing
Follows2013
Precedes2015
Websitewww.apec-china.org.cn

The APEC China 2014 was the 22nd annual gathering of APEC leaders. It was held in Yanqi Lake (Chinese: zh:雁栖湖; pinyin: Yànqī hú), Huairou District, Beijing on 10–12, November 2014.

Attendees

Prior to a two plane tragedies of Malaysia Airlines flight between MH370 and MH17, this was the first APEC meeting for Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and Chilean President Michelle Bachelet (in her comeback) since their inaugurations on 20 October 2014, 22 May 2014 and 11 March 2014, respectively.[1][2][3]

It was also the last APEC meeting for Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott (who stepped down on September 15, 2015, following the 2015 Australian leadership spill) and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper (who stepped down on November 4, 2015, following the 2015 Canadian federal election).

Preparations

According to journalist John Pomfret, China spent $6 billion on preparations for the summit.[4]

China attempted to prevent Beijing's frequent smog from occurring during the meeting through various measures, including limiting driving and closing down factories in Beijing and the surrounding province of Hebei.[5][6] The air was clear towards the beginning of the APEC week,[7] but was predicted to be somewhat smoggy during the summit itself.[6][8] The efforts created somewhat of a backlash among internet users, with the phrase "APEC blue" being coined to satirically refer to something fleeting.[9]

Beijing banned subway riders from wearing Halloween costumes ahead of the event, citing public order concerns.[10]

Events

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had a highly anticipated face-to-face meeting on November 10. Both leaders were described as looking noticeably dour in the photos of them taken prior to the meeting.[11]

On November 12, Xi and Obama announced that their two nations would work to reduce greenhouse gases. The United States would cut their 2005 carbon emissions by 26% to 28% by 2025, while China would peak their carbon emissions by 2030 and strive to achieve 20% of its energy from sources that do not produce carbon emissions. This agreement marks the first time that China agreed to peak its carbon emissions.[12][13]

Occupy Central leaders speculated on trying to "crash" the summit to protest Beijing's actions in Hong Kong,[14][15] but were not allowed to enter Mainland China.[16]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ The leaders/representatives of Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, United States, and Vietnam met there as members in both organizations.
  2. ^ Australia, Canada, China, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Korea and the United States are members in both organizations.

References

  1. ^ "Indonesian Leader in Global Spotlight - The New York Times". The New York Times. 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2018-09-21.
  2. ^ "Int'l summits to dominate Jokowi's early weeks". The Jakarta Post.
  3. ^ "Michelle Bachelet sworn in as Chile's president". BBC News. 11 March 2014. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  4. ^ Jake Adelstein (11 November 2014). "Beijing's 'Star Trek' APEC Summit". The Daily Beast.
  5. ^ "Letter to Obama: Don't be fooled if Beijing's skies are blue". Washington Post.
  6. ^ a b "In Beijing, Clearer Views Hide Real Life - The New York Times". The New York Times. 2014-11-07. Retrieved 2018-09-21.
  7. ^ "China's APEC summit measures leave Beijing with cleaner air". Los Angeles Times. 4 November 2014.
  8. ^ "Beijing May Face Smoggy APEC Summit Despite Cleanup Efforts". Bloomberg News. 5 November 2014.
  9. ^ "China state media defends APEC blue skies". Yahoo!. Archived from the original on 2014-11-08.
  10. ^ "Beijing bans Halloween costumes on subway ahead of APEC". Reuters. 31 October 2014.
  11. ^ Jonathan Kaiman (10 November 2014). "Japan's Abe and China's Xi hold ice-breaking meeting as Apec starts". the Guardian.
  12. ^ "China marks six priorities for new-type of major-country relations with US - Xinhua | English.news.cn". Archived from the original on 2014-11-12. Retrieved 2014-11-12.
  13. ^ Hoye, Matt (2014-11-12). "U.S. and China reach historic climate change agreement". CNN. Retrieved 2018-09-21.
  14. ^ "Student leaders may try to crash Apec summit in Beijing to seek talks". South China Morning Post. 31 October 2014.
  15. ^ Mia Lamar (3 November 2014). "Hong Kong Students Plan Beijing Protest". The Wall Street Journal.
  16. ^ Chris Buckley; Alan Wong (15 November 2014). "Hong Kong Activists Kept From Flying to Beijing". The New York Times.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to APEC China 2014.
Preceded byAPEC Indonesia 2013 APEC meetings 2014 Succeeded byAPEC Philippines 2015
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
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