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Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Le
Cong Phung (C) presides over the meeting in Hanoi, capital of Vietnam,
Nov. 12, 2006. The informal session of the APEC Senior officials' Meeting
closed in Hanoi on Sunday.(Xinhua Photo)
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HANOI, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) -- World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations will
continue to be of great importance for the APEC meetings which start here on
Sunday as the APEC member economies seek to find a way forward, Vietnam's deputy
foreign minister said Sunday morning.
Speaking at the beginning of the two-day Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC) Concluding Senior Official's Meeting (CSOM), which
is to be followed by the APEC Joint Ministerial Meeting on Nov. 15-16 and APEC
Economic Leaders' Meeting on Nov. 18-19, Le Cong Phung, also chair of the CSOM,
said APEC can lead the way for all members of the WTO to reignite negotiations
and conclude the Doha Development Agenda next year.
During the CSOM, senior officials from member
economies will discuss the adoption of APEC Model Measures for Free Trade
Agreements and guidelines to secure supply chains against counterfeit and
pirated goods to unlock the stalled WTO negotiations.
"APEC members provide an accurate gauge of global
economic views and ideas, so if APEC can identify a way forward this path will
most likely be suitable to the broader WTO membership," he said, adding that
representatives of APEC member economies based in Geneva have been working on a
solution and senior officials will be updated on this progress.
Phung said APEC senior officials will also consider
the adoption of model measures that can be used by member economies in the
negotiation of Free Trade Agreements and Regional Trade Arrangements
(FTAs/RTAs).
"There are more than 20 FTAs and RTAs in force in the
APEC region and more under negotiation," he noted.
Phung said the member economies are working to ensure
that a "spaghetti bowl" effect of having so many differing agreements does not
undermine regional business environment and unduly increase transaction costs.
"APEC model measures will increase transparency of new FTAs and RTAs and will be
of particular benefit to member economies while negotiating their FTAs/RTAs."
Ministers of the member economies will also consider
model measures that cover areas such as rules of origin, transparency,
cooperation and others in the 18th APEC Joint Ministerial Meeting slated for
Nov. 15-16.
Advancing multilateral trade and high quality
FTAs/RTAs are important components of one of the main objectives for the 18th
meeting and the 14th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting slated for Nov. 18-19 in
Hanoi: the release of the Hanoi Action Plan which provides the detail required
to implement last year's Busan roadmap to achieve the APEC Bogor goals.
"The plan will have core components that include
support for the multilateral trading system, strengthening of Individual Action
Plans and Collective Action plans (CAPs/IAPs), high quality FTAs/RTAs, and
strengthening of business activities in the region and capacity building," Phung
said.
For business to thrive in the region, APEC members
have an obligation to ensure the business environment is conducive to growth, he
said, noting that the Hanoi Action Plan will provide clear direction on a range
of areas that include trade facilitation, private sector development, the
digital economy and intellectual property rights, investment facilitation,
transparency and anti-corruption, secure trade, structural reform and pathfinder
initiatives.
APEC senior officials meet to reach
trade, investment consensus
HANOI, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) -- Senior officials from 21 member
economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) met informally here
Sunday to conclude outcomes of their three previous meetings. full story
Free trade issues to top agenda of
14th APEC economic leaders meeting
HANOI, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) -- Senior officials from the 21
APEC member economies began a two-day meeting here Sunday to finalize the agenda
for the forthcoming 14th APEC Economic Leaders Informal Meeting, with free and
open trade issues expected to top their agenda. full story
