Asia-Pacific states vow of strengthening APEC's mandate

Asia-Pacific states vow of strengthening APEC's mandate

By Pandaya

BANGKOK (JP): ASEAN member countries and major economic powers
pledged yesterday to strengthen the mandates of the Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum to liberalize trade and
investment.

Foreign ministers from 12 Asia-Pacific countries attending the
27th ASEAN meeting explored ways to forge new business linkages
in vital economic sectors such as telecommunications, and spur
private sector activities throughout the region.

Foreign ministers from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South
Korea, Canada and the United States, which was represented by
Deputy Foreign Secretary Strobe Talbott, presented their regional
economic views in the gathering.

The six ASEAN members, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore,
Thailand and the Philippines, are members of APEC, which will
hold the second summit in Bogor, 60 kilometers south of Jakarta,
in November. The first summit was held in Seattle last year.

"The United States is committed to APEC as a catalyst for
economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region and we continue
to regard ASEAN as being the core of APEC," Talbott said.

"Under President Soeharto's leadership, we will strengthen
APEC's mandate to liberate trade and investment," he added.

Besides the ASEAN members, APEC also groups Japan, the United
States, Australia, Canada, South Korea, New Zealand, Mexico,
China, Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Talbott said that this year's cabinet-level meetings of APEC's
finance, trade and environmental ministers are encouraging
examples of the extensive consultation that are developing among
APEC nations.

Obstacles

Australian Foreign Minister Garth Evans said APEC, formed in
Canberra in 1989, had assumed major importance in member
countries' efforts to remove obstacles to regional growth.

He said that solid progress had been made at the sub-regional
level with the initiation of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA).

ASEAN countries are Australia's major export market. Its trade
with ASEAN has grown to reach almost US$10 billion in 1992/93
with Australian exports to the region rising over the past 20
years from under six percent of its total exports to reach 14
percent or $6.4 billion last year, Evans said.

"We will need to put in much hard work into the further
development of APEC. There is a wide range of post-Uruguay Round
actions to complete, including early ratification of national
legislation to implement the round," he said.

Evans said that APEC should be upgraded from the loose
economic grouping founded five years ago to a regional vehicle
for free trade.

Meanwhile, Japan promised to continue assisting developing
countries through its Overseas Development Aid (ODA) and
promoting the transfer of investment and technology to ASEAN
countries.

Japan, often criticized of contributing too little for
environment preservation projects, also reiterated its commitment
to provide up to 1,000 billion yen in aid for environment
projects until 1997.