Clinton to meet ASEAN leaders on currency crisis

Clinton to meet ASEAN leaders on currency crisis

MANILA (AFP): U.S. President Bill Clinton is to meet with a
group of Southeast Asian leaders in Canada later this month to
discuss the financial turmoil besetting their economies,
Philippine Foreign Secretary Domingo Siazon said yesterday.

The meeting with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) leaders should be held over breakfast on the sidelines of
the November 24-25 summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) forum in Vancouver, Siazon told reporters
here.

"President Clinton has indicated that he would like to have a
breakfast with the ASEAN leaders," he said.

The Filipino official said ASEAN expects the U.S. leader to
discuss "how to deal with this particular currency turbulence,
and of course to reassure Southeast Asia that in the eyes of the
United States of America, Southeast Asia is important as a major
economic partner."

The meeting has been tentatively set for Nov. 24, he added.
ASEAN groups Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines,
Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, as well as Myanmar and Laos. The
heads of government of the first seven are scheduled to attend
the APEC summit.

APEC comprises Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong
Kong, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New
Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan,
Thailand and the United States.

A government statement said Tuesday that Philippine President
Fidel Ramos will ask the APEC summit to endorse a financial
mechanism to support beleaguered Asian economies.

In other development, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir
Mohamad said Tuesday he hoped to win sympathy for Asian countries
adversely affected by recent currency turmoil at a summit of
Asia-Pacific leaders later this month.

"I would like APEC to appreciate the issue of currencies," he
told a seminar, referring to the 18-member Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation forum whose leaders are scheduled to meet in
Vancouver from Nov. 24.

"It is important that the more powerful and rich countries
should give consideration to the poor members. They must be
sympathetic. They cannot say it is market forces," the prime
minister said.

"I hope to get some sympathy from members of APEC," he added.

On the proposed Asian fund facility, Mahathir said Malaysia
was keen to find out what role it could play in the wake of the
current regional currency crisis.

"If it is just another extension of the International Monetary
Fund of course there would be almost no necessity (for the fund)
but we would accept the Asian fund function differently from the
IMF," the prime minister said.

The facility was mooted by Japan to help ensure stable
currency exchanges in the region.