Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend APEC summit in Bangkok, Thailand
Chinese President Xi Jinping has confirmed his attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok next month, according to Thai government spokesperson Don Pramudwinai.
Don told the media today that President Xi had officially confirmed his attendance as a “special guest” at the summit as China is not an APEC member state. Other “special guests” who have confirmed their attendance include President of France Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister of Cambodia Hun Sen.
The spokesperson added that Thailand is expecting official confirmation from President of Russia Vladimir Putin. However, a “security source” already reported that Putin had officially confirmed his attendance earlier this month.
So far, only four of the world’s 21 APEC member states are officially sending delegations to Bangkok, including Mexico, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. The clock is ticking, with the meeting scheduled in less than three weeks on November 18-19.
President of the USA Joe Biden will not be attending but is sending Vice President Kamala Harris to Bangkok in lieu. Biden will attend the annual US-ASEAN summit in Cambodia on November 12-13 and fly onwards to Indonesia to take part in the East Asia summit.
The UK and India were both invited to the summit despite not being APEC members due to their strong trade ties with Thailand. However, both countries cannot make it.
Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered the National Security Council to step up safety measures in preparation for the APEC summit…
“It is considered an important step for Thailand to be accepted by foreign countries which will further allow the nation to benefit from investments and tourism among others.”
“I implore everyone to keep our country safe and prevent any incidents from affecting the event as it will hamper the progress of our country.”
Attendees of a meeting chaired by General Prayut agreed to closely monitor political activists and “violent groups” that “may use the event to negatively impact the country’s image.”
Thai police are cracking down on foreign fugitives in the kingdom before the event to ensure the safety of the world leaders in attendance.
