RI supports Japan's APEC action plans

JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto supported yesterday Japan's action plans for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, which will be announced at its third leadership meeting in Osaka in November.

"President Soeharto, after listening to a report from Japanese Minister of International Trade and Industry Ryutaro Hashimoto, gave his firm support to the action plans prepared by Japan for the Osaka meeting," Coordinating Minister for Industry and Trade Hartarto said after accompanying the Japanese minister in a meeting with Soeharto at the Bina Graha presidential office.

The third summit in Osaka is expected to come up with an "action agenda" to implement the free trade declaration made at the second summit in Bogor, West Java, last November.

At their Bogor meeting, APEC leaders agreed that all members should achieve free trade and investment in the region by 2020 with industrialized members aiming for an earlier deadline of 2010.

Hartarto said yesterday that the planned agenda will include trade liberalization, technical cooperation and the facilitation of trade and investment among APEC members.

Hashimoto said that Japan will be responsible for the formulation of the action agenda to implement the Bogor declaration.

"With comments from President Soeharto, we are strongly determined that the Osaka meeting will be a success," he said.

Hartarto said that Japan, with its strong leadership, is also expected to be able to solve problems caused by differences of opinion among APEC members.

APEC groups 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.

Refusal

The minister refused to specify the differences which have erupted among APEC members. "I do believe that these differences can be solved by senior officials in their next meeting in Hong Kong," he said.

The Hong Kong meeting is scheduled for Sept. 12 to 13.

Japanese officials said in June that the United States had disrupted preparations for the November summit in Osaka by backing out of a proposed regional free-trade mechanism.

According to the officials, Washington wanted a short-term approach to freeing trade in the region instead of the long-term mechanism adopted at the APEC summit in Bogor last November.

Hashimoto said yesterday that he had also discussed efforts to promote bilateral relations between Japan and Indonesia and explained Japan's newly announced measures aimed at increasing Japanese investment overseas and curbing the appreciation of the yen. (riz)