APEC leaders set for tough talks<\/p>\n
Agence France-Presse, Busan, South Korea<\/p>\n
Weighed down by gridlocked trade talks and targeted by anti-
\nglobalization protests, Asia-Pacific leaders meet this week to
\naddress pressing issues such as the economy, bird flu and
\nterrorism.<\/p>\n
U.S. President George W. Bush and Chinese President Hu Jintao
\nwill be among the leaders taking part in the annual Asia-Pacific
\nEconomic Cooperation forum (APEC) summit, being held this year in
\nthe South Korean port of Busan.<\/p>\n
APEC's free-trade agenda has been overshadowed since the Sept.
\n11 attacks by security and terrorism, but problems preceding
\nDecember's World Trade Organization (WTO) talks in Hong Kong will
\ndominate this week's meetings.<\/p>\n
\"The WTO is probably the highest priority for APEC,\" said a
\nU.S. official.<\/p>\n
A bitter dispute over agriculture subsidies in rich countries
\nhas brought warnings that the Dec. 13-18 Hong Kong meeting could
\nfail, a scenario that APEC leaders will try to head off in talks
\non Friday and Saturday.<\/p>\n
The leaders are set to issue a statement calling on all
\nnations involved in the talks to make concessions to ensure the
\nround of negotiations launched in the Qatari capital Doha in 2001
\ndo not collapse.<\/p>\n
\"We are looking at a very powerful statement,\" South Korea's
\nAPEC ambassador Kim Jong-Hoon said on Sunday. He said the exact
\nwording was still being debated.<\/p>\n
Officials stressed there would be no negotiations on nitty-
\ngritty WTO problems, but that APEC leaders wanted to make a
\nstrong political push to break the deadlock.<\/p>\n
APEC was set up to forge a free trade area among the 21
\ncountries and territories bordering the Pacific Ocean, and it has
\nbecome a magnet for protesters opposed to the inequalities of the
\nworld's trading system.<\/p>\n
A radical alliance of farmers, students, anti-globalization
\ngroups and anti-war demonstrators has vowed to bring 100,000
\npeople onto the streets of Busan to protest against the summit.<\/p>\n
South Korean police have mobilized a huge security operation,
\ndeploying over 30,000 officers and enforcing draconian land, sea
\nand air exclusion zones around the conference venues.<\/p>\n
As China reported a new bird flu outbreak and global concern
\nover the H5N1 virus strain continued, APEC leaders were to pledge
\ncloser cooperation, an action plan to combat a possible pandemic
\nand joint efforts to find a vaccine.<\/p>\n
They were also expected to address the stockpiling of Tamiflu
\nand the relaxing of intellectual property regulations on the
\nantiviral drug, considered the best treatment for the virus in
\nhumans.<\/p>\n
The leaders are also expected to issue a strong statement
\ncondemning terrorism following last week's hotel bombings in
\nJordan.<\/p>\n
As part of efforts to combat terrorism, APEC officials on
\nSunday approved a U.S. proposal to check airports for
\nvulnerability to hand-held surface-to-air missiles.<\/p>\n
The APEC forum was launched in 1989 and aims to establish a
\nfree trade area by 2020. It only makes non-binding agreements,
\nwhich has led some analysts to question its relevance.<\/p>\n
APEC foreign and trade ministers will meet on Tuesday and
\nWednesday before the summit on Friday and Saturday, which will
\nfinish with a photocall in which the leaders will wear the
\nHanbok, a traditional Korean silk tunic.<\/p>\n
The forum groups Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong
\nKong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New
\nGuinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea,
\nTaiwan, Thailand, the United States and Vietnam.<\/p>",
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