Japan too slow in realizing APEC vision

JAKARTA (JP): Singaporean Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong has criticized Japan for not going "full steam" in preparing a blueprint to follow up on last year's Bogor Declaration of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.

"At this stage, the Japanese government has been very cautious in taking the first steps," Goh told a press conference after a meeting with Indonesia's President Soeharto at the Merdeka Palace yesterday.

Goh, who arrived here yesterday for a two-day working visit, said the results achieved in last year's APEC summit in Bogor, West Java, as well as the previous summit on Blake Island, off Seattle in the United States, would be rendered meaningless if the coming meeting in Osaka, Japan, failed to take concrete steps towards trade liberalization.

"A failure in Osaka would therefore mean a failure in Bogor," he said.

APEC is a regional economic forum which groups the six members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) -- Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand -- as well as Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, South Korea, Taiwan, and the United States.

During the follow-up meeting to the first APEC Economic Leaders Meeting in Seattle in 1993, leaders in Bogor last year adopted the Bogor Declaration, which seeks a comprehensive liberalization of trade in the Asia Pacific region by the year 2010 for developed member economies and 2020 for developing ones.

The Bogor summit also resolved to formulate a blueprint for the trade liberalization at next leaders meeting, which is scheduled to take place in Osaka this November.

Goh said that during his meeting with Soeharto they had agreed on the importance of having a definite direction for the Bogor Declaration.

"The news which I received from the (Japanese) officials is not, at this stage, very encouraging," he said.

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The prime minister commented: "Maybe the Japanese host is not going full steam ahead to come up with a concrete plan to achieve the vision and framework for free trade we decided upon in Bogor."

"I hope I am wrong, but it is still early days," Goh said, without explaining why he thought Tokyo was moving at such a sluggish pace.

He said that meetings such as the one he had with Soeharto were important in order that the leaders came to Osaka with a clear plan.

Goh said he had recently conducted meetings in Malaysia and the Philippines and was planning to visit Thailand and Brunei in the near future.

He said he would also like to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama ahead of the Osaka meeting.

Indonesian Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono said yesterday that during their meeting Goh and Soeharto had reached agreement on the steps that should be taken to make the Osaka meeting a success.

"In accordance with the message of the Bogor Declaration, a plan of action should be produced in Osaka," Moerdiono said.

Apart from APEC, Goh and Soeharto also discussed the planned Asia-Europe summit.

Goh said that the planned summit, scheduled for March or April 1996 in Bangkok, would be attended by members of the European Union, the ASEAN countries and Vietnam, China, Japan and South Korea.

Although they will not participate in next year's Asia-Europe Summit, Goh said there was always the possibility that Australia and New Zealand would be allowed to take part in the second such summit should they wish to.

On the bilateral side, Moerdiono said Soeharto invited Singaporean entrepreneurs to partake in infrastructure development in Indonesia, particularly in the construction of seaports.

Apart from a port in Cirebon, West Java, Soeharto also had in mind the development of a port in the Sunda Straits, Moerdiono said.

Goh said that during the meeting he had brought to Soeharto's attention the vast investment opportunities in China, which meant serious competition for Indonesia in attracting investors.

Despite the large amount of investments going to China, Goh said that Singapore was keen to invest in ASEAN countries, including Indonesia.

Goh yesterday invited Soeharto to attend the opening of a large exhibition in Singapore in September.

The exhibition is being held to mark, not only the 30th anniversary of Singapore, but also the 50th anniversary of Indonesian independence, Moerdiono said, adding that the president had welcomed the invitation. (mds)