The 2026 APEC Summit, scheduled to hold in Shenzhen, southern China, is already drawing geopolitical attention given the strained relations between Beijing and Taipei. While APEC remains one of the few international platforms that accommodates Taiwan — which participates under the name “Chinese Taipei” to avoid diplomatic friction — tensions between both sides have escalated in recent years.
China has routinely staged military exercises around Taiwan and continues to refuse direct communication with President Lai Ching-te, whom it labels a “separatist.” These hostilities have heightened sensitivity around Taiwan’s engagement in international events hosted by Beijing.
Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry official, Jonathan Sun, speaking after the conclusion of this year’s APEC meetings in South Korea, said Taipei had earlier sought assurances about “equal treatment” and participant safety for the 2026 summit. According to him, China had previously provided written guarantees on safety during the 2024 edition, and Taiwan now expects those commitments to be upheld.
Responding to these remarks, China’s foreign ministry dismissed any cause for concern. “As the host of APEC in 2026, China will fulfil its host-country obligations in accordance with APEC rules and customary practice, and there will be no issue with all parties participating smoothly,” the ministry said in a written statement to Reuters.
It added pointedly that “the key to Chinese Taipei's participation in APEC activities lies in compliance with the 'one China' principle and the relevant APEC memorandum of understanding, rather than any safety issues.”
Beijing maintains that Taiwan is an inalienable part of its territory under the “one China” framework — a claim Taipei firmly rejects, insisting that only its 23 million citizens have the right to decide their political future.
Diplomatic sensitivities were further stoked during this year’s APEC summit when Taiwan’s representative, former economy minister Lin Hsin-i, met with Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in Seoul. Beijing condemned the meeting, but Lin brushed off the criticism, noting that Japan, like other APEC economies, maintains informal ties with Taiwan.
Back in Taipei, Sun reiterated that the island expected fair treatment from China in 2026 and called on other member economies to ensure that the spirit of inclusion within APEC is upheld. “We hope everyone can urge the Chinese side to fulfil their promises to ensure the safety of all participants and equal participation of the economies, not only Taiwan,” he said.
The last time China hosted the APEC summit — in 2014 — relations with Taiwan were relatively cordial under then-President Ma Ying-jeou, whose administration signed major trade and tourism agreements with Beijing. By contrast, the upcoming 2026 summit is taking shape under a far more contentious political climate, reviving questions about whether APEC’s cooperative ethos can withstand the region’s widening geopolitical rifts.