Exclusive By: Kanwal Abidi
Washington D.C. The United States hosted the APEC Alliance for Supply Chain Connectivity (A2C2) Regional Roundtable in Mexico City on January 13, 2026. This initiative supports U.S. efforts to achieve more fair and balanced trade with our APEC partners.
This A2C2 Regional Roundtable expands on efforts made during the APEC 2025 Third Senior Officials Meeting (SOM3) in Incheon, Korea when members prioritized ongoing efforts to expand participation and recommended new approaches to private sector engagement.
The Regional Roundtable builds on the long history of U.S. leadership in fostering supply chain resilience in the Asia-Pacific region through APEC and the A2C2.
By promoting secure, resilient, and diverse supply chains, U.S. businesses benefit from greater connectivity, expand opportunities across the region, and recover quickly when supply chain disruptions occur.
Featuring robust public-private dialogue and coordination, this meeting brought together APEC members to identify regional and global best practices for supply chain digitalization and to discuss how to operationalize those practices within their domestic contexts — benefiting consumers and businesses from the United States and across the region.
At the A2C2, a wide range of private sector and APEC government experts discussed the digitalization of trade and customs procedures. Panelists highlighted stakeholder engagement, change management strategies, and skill development as elements of success.
Established in 2014, the APEC Alliance for Supply Chain Connectivity (A2C2) serves as an advisory channel for interested stakeholders – including experts from APEC economies, companies, industry associations, multilateral institutions, and non?governmental organizations – to contribute to APEC’s supply chain connectivity initiative. The United States is proud of the leading role we have played in APEC, and our companies, technology, and workers have been instrumental to building a prosperous Asia-Pacific.
APEC is crucial to pursuing America First foreign, trade, and investment policies that foster prosperity in the United States and across the region by breaking down barriers for business, boosting fair and reciprocal trade and supporting job growth.
