Chinese President Xi Jinping warned on Thursday against the relapsing into a Cold War mentality due to the rising tensions in the Asian-Pacific region.

Xi’s remarks came on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) annual summit in New Zealand, where he spoke in a pre-recorded video.

“The Asia-Pacific region cannot and should not relapse into the confrontation and division of the Cold War era,” the Chinese president said, noting that all attempts to divide the region along ideological or geopolitical lines are bound to fail.

His speech came in the heels of the AUKUS pact between Australia, the US, and the UK, which was seen as an effort to undermine China’s military power in the region, a move Beijing described as one that "will escalate regional tensions, provoke an arms race and threaten regional peace and stability."

The Chinese leader also stressed the importance of making COVID-19 vaccines more accessible to developing nations by calling for a joint effort to close the “immunization gap”, allowing the region to emerge from the shadows of the pandemic as soon as possible.

China joins the US in the fight against climate change

Just yesterday, China and the United States announced a joint initiative to deliver enhanced climate action, Beijing's envoy on climate change told the COP26 summit.

"Both sides recognize that there is a gap between the current effort and the Paris Agreement goals, so we will jointly strengthen climate action," China’s chief climate negotiator Xie Zhenhua told reporters in a surprise announcement.

China and the US are the world's two largest emitters, and together, they make up nearly 40% of all carbon pollution.

The initiative had been brewing for the last 10 months, and it saw China and the US holding 30 virtual meetings to reach an agreement.