Chinese president proposes 'dream' for Asia-Pacific

BEIJING, China — Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday called for efforts to create and fulfill an "Asia-Pacific dream," citing China as a regional leader.

"The development prospect of our region hinges on the decisions and actions we take today," he said. "We are duty-bound to create and fulfill an Asia-Pacific dream for our people."

His speech was delivered at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit in Beijing which attracted over 1,500 business people from 21 APEC member economies including the Philippines and 17 other countries and regions.

At the pre-summit event, Xi echoed his long pronounced "Asia-Pacific dream" based on "a sense of shared destinies," following the trend of peace, development and win-win cooperation, and jointly working for the prosperity and progress of the region, Xi said.

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Beijing, however, has been embroiled in a tense territorial dispute with its neighbors over the South and East China Seas, while it refuses to interfere in conflicts elsewhere abroad.

The Chinese leader said part of the Chinese dream is to have more economic vibrancy, free trade and investment facilitation, better roads, and closer people-to-people exchanges.

Ensuring greater security and prosperity for the people and giving children a better environment to grow, work and live is an aspect of such vision, he said.

To realize the Asia-Pacific dream, the region the region's economies need to explore new drivers for growth and draw a blueprint for comprehensive connectivity, he said. - with reports from Xinhua