Asian and Pacific leaders gathered in San Francisco for the 2023 edition of the APEC Summit. Japan stressed the importance of a coordinated action against climate change and reaffirmed its commitment to its APAC Net Zero agenda.

The 34th APEC Summit was held this year on 16-17 November in San Francisco, California. This annual summit, which brings together 21 member states and was first organized in 1989, is a key event devoted to economic and trade issues affecting the countries of the Pacific region. Together, these countries represent 40% of the world's population and almost 50% of world trade.

Gathered this year around the theme of "Creating a resilient and sustainable future for all", the Heads of State and Foreign Diplomatic Leaders present were able to discuss the economic future of the Pacific and Indo-Pacific regions as the issue of value chain security arises, and the world continues to recover from a global pandemic which has shaken the world economy. This theme has enabled guests to discuss and advance work on key issues such as supply chain resilience, digital trade, connectivity, opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises, climate change, environmental sustainability, food security, health, anti-corruption, digitization, women's economic empowerment and support for historically underserved and underrepresented communities. The summit aims to provide member economies with headwinds to strengthen recovery and resilience, as well as advance broad-based economic growth.

Japan, present at the summit in the person of Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, addressed the key issue of the climate crisis as a "global common challenge and an urgent state of affairs that threatens people's livelihoods" during the first session of the APEC Leaders' Meeting, focusing on sustainability matters. He particularly reaffirmed Japan's role in sustainable development and energy transition efforts in the region and announced that Japan would hold in December this year the first summit meeting of the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC), which was proposed last year to accelerate the decarbonization process in Asian countries. This will promote efforts to achieve energy transition, decarbonization and carbon neutrality in the Asia-Pacific region.

In a consensus statement issued at the end of their summit, APEC leaders again reaffirmed their determination to establish a free, open and transparent trade and investment environment. The next APEC summit will be held in Peru next year.