Leaders Of Apec Member-States Committed To Pursuing Prosperity For All Through Cooperation

The leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation member-states "are fully committed to pursuing prosperity for all through broader participation and cooperation," says the Declaration of the APEC Economic Leaders prepared to be signed. The APEC leaders intend to work together in the interest of the more dynamic and prosperous Asia-Pacific Region via encouraging sustainable economic growth and joint use of advantages provided by globalization and the new economy, promoting liberalization processes, and creating favorable conditions for trade and investment. The draft declaration outlines that the summit is taking place "at a crucially important moment," as the current slowdown in growth rates in major countries of the world turned out to be more serious than expected. Moreover, the terrorist attacks on the United States may, in the opinion of the APEC leaders, "undermine a number of industries and negatively affect trust between consumers and investors." The APEC leaders "would like to send a clear and sound signal about the collective determination of the Asia-Pacific community to counter terrorism." They state their commitment to overcoming the current downturn in economic growth and facilitating the feeling of confidence in people in the time of uncertainty by fighting against protectionism. They also state their commitment to launching the new round of the WTO at the upcoming Ministerial Conference of this organization. The APEC counties' leaders welcome the completion of the negotiations on conditions of China's membership in the WTO and "view this as a historic event, which does not only assist in the WTO's transformation into the genuinely world-wide organization, but also fortifies the fundaments of international economic cooperation." The heads of the APEC member-states reiterate "their firm support for the final approval of Chinese Taipei's membership in the WTO and the promotion of the Russian Federation and Vietnam's entering the organisation."