On 1 November, the leaders of the nations of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum will meet in the historic South Korean city of Gyeongju.

Gyeongju was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Silla (57 BC – 935 AD), which ruled most of the Korean peninsula for close to a thousand years. Not unlike the modern Republic of Korea, Silla became a prosperous and wealthy country. Gyeongju was then the fourth largest city in the world. 

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will host the 2025 APEC Summit and Leader’s Forum. The occasion is historic for Korea, timely for Australia, and opportune — or dangerous — for the US-China relationship. The original idea of APEC was proposed by former prime minister Bob Hawke during a speech in Seoul on 31 January 1989. Ten months later, 12 Asia-Pacific economies met in Canberra to establish APEC. The full membership now numbers 21 nations – including China, Russia and Vietnam. 

In 1993, prime minister Paul Keating convinced US President Bill Clinton to support the establishment of an annual APEC Leaders’ Meeting to provide greater strategic vision and direction for economic co-operation in the region. Keating wanted APEC to be a geopolitical strategic forum for heads of government. To accommodate the Americans, he settled for a hybrid model that included leaders, but focused mostly on economic matters. It is this leaders’ meeting, in November, that will provide a unique opportunity for Presidents Trump and Xi — along with prime minister Anthony Albanese and the leaders of Japan and the ASEAN economies — to meet in person. The usual proceedings of the summit will be enlivened this year by the escalating economic and military tensions between the US and China – and between China and the host country, Korea.

Writing in this journal on 6 October, former Australian foreign policy official Jeffrey Robertson highlighted the potential impact of anti-China protests at the upcoming summit. Robertson now lives in Korea. He notes that anti-China sentiment is today a regular feature at political demonstrations in Seoul and has grown substantially with the spread of extreme right sentiment on social media. Both Beijing and Seoul are concerned, he says. 

Over the past year, at least 110 anti-China rallies have taken place nationwide, according to data from the Korean National Police Agency. Anti-Chinese emotions escalated in 2024 following former South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol’s false claims that past elections in Korea were rigged due to Chinese government influence. Though Yoon is now standing trial for insurrection, anti-China sentiment among far right conservatives remains strong.

Robertson has speculated on what the anti China protests really mean for........

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