Leaders hail free trade pact, Mahathir has reservation
JAKARTA (JP): Most APEC leaders praised the Bogor declaration yesterday but Malaysia registered some reservations.
Australia's Paul Keating called the declaration "an extraordinary new path for the Asia-Pacific region toward extraordinary goals."
"The significance of this commitment is enormous," he told a press conference at the Grand Hyatt hotel. "It is stronger than that made by parties to the GATT or by G7 countries. "
Keating paid tribute to the APEC chairman.
"It is no accident that pressure is coming from Asia for further global trade liberalization. The fact that President Soeharto, the leader of one of the world's largest developing countries, has taken the initiative is a sign of the fundamental transformations which are taking place in the world economy."
Japan's Tomiichi Murayama, whose country will take the APEC leadership on Jan. 1, announced that he would immediately begin planning an action agenda for APEC.
Murayama mentioned that a member had some reservations about the declaration but said, "at the end of the discussion, Soeharto wrapped it up, saying that the declaration would be accepted by all."
Japan also proposed enhancing cooperation by combining the attributes of each member. Japan, he added, also stressed cooperation for the cultivation of small and medium enterprises.
China's Jiang Zemin said his country was looking at the benefits from the Bogor declaration in the future. "We endorse the Asia Pacific regional trade and investment liberalization and the long-term objective."
He warned that given the diversity within APEC, liberalization should proceed in phases. "There should be different timetables according to each member's (conditions)," he said.
Malaysia's Mahathir Mohamad is due to give a press briefing today but his delegation issued a statement expressing reservations about the declaration.
"The target dates of 2020 and 2010 are indicative dates and non-binding on member economies," said the statement.
"The liberalization process to be undertaken will be on a best endeavor basis," it said. "APEC member economies will liberalize their trade and investment regime based on their capacity to undertake such liberalization commensurate with their level of development."
Malaysia called for the termination of the APEC mandate to the Eminent Persons Group and, in an apparent jab at United States and other Western countries in APEC, said "APEC member economies should, as a matter of priority, ratify the World Trade Organization and implement the Uruguay Round results."
Canada's Jean Chretien described the Bogor result as "a very solid declaration."
"The unanimity was very good, the mood was very positive ... everybody recognized that growth is sustained by reduction of tariffs and more trade," Chretien said.
Hong Kong's Hamish MacLeod hailed the leaders' endorsement in spite of the diversity in the level of economy of APEC members.
"This diversity is both an opportunity and a challenge. It is an opportunity to demonstrate how free trade between different and complementary economies can produce significant gains for all. It is a challenge in that we must find ways of accommodating our differences as we move towards the goal," MacLeod said.
He said even the newly-industrialized countries held different views on the deadline. "I think they can choose whether they will implement the free trade either earlier by 2010 or later by 2020," he added. (pan/ego/pwn/fhp)