ASIA MUST NOT BECOME ARENA FOR ‘BIG POWER CONTEST’, SAYS CHINESE PREZ

BANGKOK: The Asia-Pacific is no one’s backyard and should not become an arena of big power rivalry, China’s President Xi Jinping said on Thursday, warning against Cold War tensions in a region that is a flashpoint of competition between Beijing and Washington.

Xi’s remarks ahead of an AsiaPacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok were an apparent reference to U.S. efforts with regional allies and partners to blunt what they see as China’s growing coercive economic and military influence.

“No attempt to wage a new cold war will ever be allowed by the people or by our times,” Xi said in written remarks prepared for a business event linked to the summit.

“We should follow a path of openness and inclusiveness,” he said in the speech, which was provided by organisers, adding the region should not turn into “an arena for big power contest.”

“Unilateralism and protectionism should be rejected by all; any attempt to politicise and weaponise economic and trade relations should also be rejected by all.”