Howard to visit Asian countries later this year
Howard to visit Asian countries later this year
SYDNEY (AFP): Australian Prime Minister John Howard is likely to visit Japan, South Korea and Indonesia later this year to underpin his commitment to economic engagement with the region, government sources said yesterday.
Howard, whose conservative coalition romped to a landslide victory in the March 2 election, may also visit Malaysia on his trip, which is likely in July during the scheduled parliamentary winter recess.
A visit to Australia next week by Malaysian leader Mahathir Mohamad has been heralded here as a diplomatic coup for Howard following claims by former prime minister Paul Keating that Asian leaders would not deal with Howard.
Howard, who said after his win that his domestic agenda would take priority and keep him at home for a while, is nevertheless eager to counter impressions -- which he says were created by Keating -- that he is less committed to engagement with Asia than was his predecessor.
Treasurer Peter Costello has already met and held talks with some of his Asian counterparts during the weekend Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) forum finance ministers' meeting in Kyoto, Japan.
Costello said in Japan that he had received several invitations for himself and Howard to visit various unnamed APEC members.
Deputy Prime Minister and Trade Minister Tim Fischer will also join the apparent rush to Asia, visiting some of the seven ASEAN member countries: Brunei, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam.
Sources said details of Fischer's visit to the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) were still being finalized, but the visits were likely before parliament resumed at the end of April.
Fischer is also expected to continue the Keating government's push to boost trade with South America, visiting several countries in May after a scheduled meeting there of the Cairns Group of free-trade agricultural producing nations.
Howard will also meet his New Zealand counterpart Jim Bolger in Sydney tomorrow, and Mahathir for informal talks in Brisbane on March 29.
In November, he plans to attend the scheduled APEC summit in Manila, which brings together 18 nations from around the Pacific rim including the United States, Canada, Japan, the ASEANs and China.
Trade officials are also hopeful that Howard will go ahead with plans for the Australian Prime Minister to launch a A$20 million (US$15.5 million) trade promotion in New Delhi in October-November.
While attending the Kyoto meeting Costello also convinced 18 APEC finance ministers to support a symposium in Sydney later this year to discuss international tax issues.
He said the Kyoto meeting had made significant steps in proving Australia's commitment to the region under a coalition government.
"For the new government in Australia it was an opportunity to underline the importance that we put on APEC," he told reporters.