U.S. envoys to gather in S'pore to discuss crisis

U.S. envoys to gather in S'pore to discuss crisis

SINGAPORE (AFP): U.S. ambassadors from across Southeast Asia will gather in Singapore this week to discuss the Asian financial crisis and ways to increase U.S. trade with the region, the U.S. embassy said here yesterday.

The envoys will meet Feb. 19-20 and hold discussions with United States Commerce Secretary William Daley, who will be on an official visit to Singapore at the time, an embassy statement said.

"The visits by Secretary Daley and a group of highly experienced American diplomats from around the region are clear indications of strong US interest in working to alleviate the current financial problems and to find realistic ways to expand U.S.-ASEAN trade," U.S. ambassador to Singapore Steven Green said.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

"We do not benefit when Asian workers lose their jobs or Asian factories close," Green said. "If anything, inaction only moves us one step farther away from our friends in the region, when in fact we should be moving steadily closer."

Green said the U.S. had vital interests at stake amid increasing economic interdependence and was a staunch supporter of Asian stability and prosperity.

"We need, and I am convinced it is possible to have, a 'win- win' way out of the current Asian currency crisis," he said.

U.S. ambassadors to Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam will take part in the meeting. Senior American diplomats from Myanmar and Hong Kong will also participate.

The embassy statement said the meeting was "part of the Clinton administration's ongoing, high-priority efforts to increase trade with the region and help in the recovery of Asian economies through support for the IMF and other international financial institutions and bilateral efforts".

The U.S. has contributed heavily to financial bailouts for Thailand, Indonesia and South Korea totaling nearly 120 billion dollars since currency turmoil erupted in the region in mid-1997.