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Third round of APEC talks in Incheon concludes with corruption, food security discussed

Published: 17 Aug. 2025, 16:22 Updated: 17 Aug. 2025, 17:15

CHO JUNG-WOO
[email protected]

Yoon Sung-mee, chair of the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Senior Officials' Meeting, center, speaks during a meeting at Songdo Convensia in Incheon on Aug.15. [MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS]

The third round of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) senior officials’ meeting concluded Friday in Incheon, drawing thousands of delegates from the forum’s 21 member economies.

Over the three weeks from July 26 to Friday, 5,800 senior officials and delegates convened for roughly 200 meetings focused on global cooperation, addressing topics such as anticorruption and food security, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

APEC is the largest economic cooperation forum in the Asia-Pacific region, bringing together countries including the United States, China, Japan and Russia. Leaders from the 21 member economies meet annually to promote trade, investment and regional integration.

The Foreign Ministry stressed that the Third Senior Officials’ Meeting and Related Meetings were “strategically significant,” serving to refine the agenda set out in the first two rounds and to prepare for the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting scheduled for late October in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang.

During the sessions in Incheon, representatives discussed a road map to enhance services, guidelines for structural reform and financial and economic cooperation.

Three ministerial meetings resulted in joint statements on digitalization, AI, food security and women’s rights. Additional ministerial sessions regarding finance and structural reform are planned in Incheon ahead of the summit this fall.

AI, food security on the agenda as Incheon gears up for APEC SOM3 talks

This year’s summit will be Korea’s first time chairing APEC since 2005, when the forum took place in Busan. It also carries symbolic weight as the first major international event hosted under President Lee Jae Myung. On July 15, Lee extended invitations to the leaders of all 20 other APEC economies, including U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, urging their attendance at the Gyeongju gathering.

According to the 2022 APEC at a Glance report, the forum’s 21 member economies account for 38 percent of the global population and 48 percent of world trade. For Korea, the forum represents an especially vital network because 75 percent of its exports and 68 percent of its imports are conducted with APEC members as of 2023.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]