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Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation

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"APEC" redirects here. Not to be confused with AIPAC, APAC, or OPEC.

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
 
Member economies of APEC
Headquarters Singapore
TypeEconomic meeting
Membership
21 economies
Leaders
• Chairperson
Pres. Dina Boluarte
• Executive Directors
Rebecca Fatima Santa Maria
Establishment1989; 35 years ago (1989)
Website
www.apec.org

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC /ˈeɪpɛk/ AY-pek[1]) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region.[2] Following the success of ASEAN's series of post-ministerial conferences launched in the mid-1980s,[3] APEC started in 1989,[4] in response to the growing interdependence of Asia-Pacific economies and the advent of regional trade blocs in other parts of the world; it aimed to establish new markets for agricultural products and raw materials beyond Europe.[5] Headquartered in Singapore,[6] APEC is recognized as one of the highest-level multilateral blocs and oldest forums in the Asia-Pacific region,[7] and exerts significant global influence.[8][9][10][11]

The heads of government of all APEC members except Taiwan (which is represented by a ministerial-level official as economic leader)[12] attend an annual APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting. The location of the meeting rotates annually among the member economies, and a famous tradition, followed for most (but not all) summits, involves the attending leaders dressing in a national costume of the host country. APEC has three official observers: the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Secretariat, the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.[13] APEC's Host Economy of the Year is considered to be invited in the first place for geographical representation to attend G20 meetings following G20 guidelines.[14][15]

History

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ABC news report of the first APEC meeting in Canberra, November 1989, featuring delegates watching the Melbourne Cup

The initial inspiration for APEC came when the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)'s series of post-ministerial conferences, launched in the mid-1980s, had demonstrated the feasibility and value of regular conferences among ministerial-level representatives of both developed and developing economies. By 1986, the post-ministerial conferences had expanded to embrace 12 members (the then six members of ASEAN and its six dialogue partners). The developments led Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke to believe in the necessity of region-wide co-operation on economic matters. In January 1989, Bob Hawke called for more effective economic co-operation across the Pacific Rim region. This led to the first meeting of APEC in the Australian capital of Canberra in November, chaired by Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Gareth Evans. Attended by ministers from twelve countries, the meeting concluded with commitments to hold future annual meetings in Singapore and South Korea. Ten months later, representatives of 12 Asia-Pacific economies met in Canberra, Australia, to establish APEC. The APEC Secretariat, based in Singapore, was established to co-ordinate the activities of the organisation.[4][5]

During the 1994 meeting in Bogor, Indonesia, APEC leaders adopted the Bogor Goals, which aimed for free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific by 2010 for industrialised economies and by 2020 for developing economies. During the November 1995 Ministerial Meeting in Osaka, Japan, a business advisory body named the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) composed of three business executives from each member-country was agreed to be established in 1996.[16][17]

In April 2001, APEC, in collaboration with five other international organisations (Eurostat, International Energy Agency, Organización Latinoamericana de Energía (OLADE) [es], Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and the United Nations Statistics Division) launched the Joint Oil Data Exercise, which in 2005 became the Joint Organisations Data Initiative (JODI).

Meeting locations

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The location of the annual meeting rotates among the members.

Year # Dates Country City Host Leader
1989 1st 6–7 November  Australia Canberra Prime Minister Bob Hawke
1990 2nd 29–31 July  Singapore Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew
1991 3rd 12–14 November  South Korea Seoul President Roh Tae-woo
1992 5th 10–11 September  Thailand Bangkok Prime Minister Anand Panyarachun
1993 6th 19–20 November  United States Blake Island President Bill Clinton
1994 7th 15–16 November  Indonesia Bogor President Suharto
1995 8th 18–19 November  Japan Osaka Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama
1996 9th 24–25 November  Philippines Subic President Fidel Ramos
1997 10th 24–25 November  Canada Vancouver Prime Minister Jean Chrétien
1998 11th 17–18 November  Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad
1999 12th 12–13 September  New Zealand Auckland Prime Minister Jenny Shipley
2000 13th 15–16 November  Brunei Bandar Seri Begawan Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah
2001 14th 20–21 October  China Shanghai President Jiang Zemin
2002 15th 26–27 October  Mexico Los Cabos President Vicente Fox
2003 16th 20–21 October  Thailand Bangkok Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra
2004 17th 20–21 November  Chile Santiago President Ricardo Lagos
2005 18th 18–19 November  South Korea Busan President Roh Moo-hyun
2006 19th 18–19 November  Vietnam Hanoi President Nguyễn Minh Triết
2007 20th 8–9 September  Australia Sydney Prime Minister John Howard
2008 21st 22–23 November  Peru Lima President Alan Garcia Perez
2009 22nd 14–15 November  Singapore Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong
2010 23rd 13–14 November  Japan Yokohama Prime Minister Naoto Kan
2011 24th 12–13 November  United States Honolulu President Barack Obama
2012 25th 9–10 September  Russia Vladivostok President Vladimir Putin
2013 26th 5–7 October  Indonesia Bali President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
2014 27th 10–11 November  China Beijing President Xi Jinping
2015 28th 18–19 November  Philippines Pasay President Benigno Aquino III
2016 29th 19–20 November  Peru Lima President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski
2017 30th 10–11 November  Vietnam Da Nang President Trần Đại Quang
2018 31st 17–18 November  Papua New Guinea Port Moresby Prime Minister Peter O'Neill
2019 32nd 16–17 November
(cancelled) 		 Chile Santiago President Sebastián Piñera
2020 32nd 20 November  Malaysia Kuala Lumpur (hosted virtually)[18] Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin
2021 – 16 July  New Zealand Auckland (hosted virtually) Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
33rd 12 November[19]
2022 34th 18–19 November  Thailand Bangkok Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha[20]
2023 35th 15–17 November[21]  United States San Francisco President Joe Biden[22]
2024 36th 10–16 November  Peru Cusco President Dina Boluarte[20]
2025 37th TBA  South Korea Gyeongju President Yoon Suk-yeol
2026 38th TBA TBA TBA TBA
2027 39th TBA  Vietnam[23] TBA TBA

Member economies

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Former South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun with Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe and Former U.S. President George W. Bush at APEC 2006 in Hanoi, Vietnam

Currently, APEC has 21 members. The criterion for membership, however, is that each member must be an independent economic entity, rather than a sovereign state. As a result, APEC uses the term member economies rather than member countries to refer to its members. One result of this criterion is that membership of the forum includes Taiwan (officially the Republic of China, participating under the name "Chinese Taipei") alongside People's Republic of China (see Cross-Strait relations), as well as Hong Kong, which entered APEC as a British colony but it is now a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. APEC also includes three official observers: ASEAN, the Pacific Islands Forum and the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council.[2]

Member economy Name as used in APEC Date of accession GDP (Nominal) in 2024
(Millions of US$)
 Australia Australia November 1989 1,790,348
 Brunei Brunei Darussalam November 1989 15,510
 Canada Canada November 1989 2,242,182
 Chile Chile November 1994 333,760
 China People's Republic of China November 1991 18,532,633
 Hong Kong Hong Kong, China[b] November 1991 406,775
 Indonesia Indonesia November 1989 1,475,690
 Japan Japan November 1989 4,110,452
 Malaysia Malaysia November 1989 445,519
 Mexico Mexico November 1993 2,017,025
 New Zealand New Zealand November 1989 257,626
 Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea November 1993 31,716
 Peru Peru November 1998 282,458
 Philippines The Philippines November 1989 471,516
 Russia Russia November 1998 2,056,844
 Singapore Singapore November 1989 525,230
 South Korea Republic of Korea November 1989 1,760,947
 Taiwan Chinese Taipei[a] November 1991 802,958
 Thailand Thailand November 1989 548,890
 United States The United States November 1989 28,781,083
 Vietnam Viet Nam November 1998 465,814


Leaders

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Member Leader position Leader (Leader of the Executive Branch) Finance portfolio Portfolio Minister
 Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese Treasurer Jim Chalmers
 Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Minister of Finance and Economy
Second Minister of Finance and Economy 		Hassanal Bolkiah
Amin Liew Abdullah
 Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland
 Chile President Gabriel Boric Minister of Finance Mario Marcel
 China President / General Secretary[c] Xi Jinping Minister of Finance Lan Fo'an
 Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Financial Secretary Paul Chan
 Indonesia President Prabowo Subianto Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani
 Japan Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba Minister of Finance Katsunobu Katō
 South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok
 Malaysia Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim Minister of Finance Anwar Ibrahim
 Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum Secretary of Finance and Public Credit Rogelio Ramírez de la O
 New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon Minister of Finance Nicola Willis
 Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape Minister for Finance and Rural Development Yangakun Miki Kaeok
 Peru President Dina Boluarte Minister of Economy and Finance José Arista
 Philippines President Bongbong Marcos Secretary of Finance Ralph Recto
 Russia President Vladimir Putin Minister of Finance Anton Siluanov
 Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong Minister of Finance Lawrence Wong
 Taiwan Leader / Leader Envoy Lai Ching-te (represented by Lin Hsin-i)[a] Minister of Finance Chuang Tsui-yun
 Thailand Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra Minister of Finance Pichai Chunhavajira
 United States President Joe Biden

Annual APEC economic leaders' meetings

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Since its formation in 1989, APEC has held annual meetings with representatives from all member economies. The first four annual meetings were attended by ministerial-level officials. Beginning in 1993, the annual meetings are named APEC Economic Leaders' Meetings and are attended by the heads of government from all member economies except Taiwan, which is represented by a ministerial-level official.[24]

Meeting developments

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In 1997, the APEC meeting was held in Vancouver. Controversy arose after officers of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police used pepper spray against protesters. The protesters objected to the presence of autocratic leaders such as Indonesian president Suharto.[25][26][27][28][29][30]

At the 2001 Leaders' Meeting in Shanghai, APEC leaders pushed for a new round of trade negotiations and support for a program of trade capacity-building assistance, leading to the launch of the Doha Development Agenda a few weeks later. The meeting also endorsed the Shanghai Accord proposed by the United States, emphasising the implementation of open markets, structural reform, and capacity building. As part of the accord, the meeting committed to develop and implement APEC transparency standards, reduce trade transaction costs in the Asia-Pacific region by five percent over five years, and pursue trade liberalisation policies relating to information technology goods and services.

In 2003, Jemaah Islamiah leader Riduan Isamuddin had planned to attack the APEC Leaders Meeting to be held in Bangkok in October. He was captured in the city of Ayutthaya, Thailand by Thai police on 11 August 2003, before he could finish planning the attack.[31]

Chile became the first South American nation to host the Leaders' Meeting in 2004. The agenda of that year was focused on terrorism and commerce, small and medium enterprise development, and contemplation of free agreements and regional trade agreements.

The 2005 Leaders' Meeting was held in Busan, South Korea. The meeting focused on the Doha round of World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations, leading up to the WTO Ministerial Conference of 2005 held in Hong Kong in December. Weeks earlier, trade negotiations in Paris were held between several WTO members, including the United States and the European Union, centred on reducing agricultural trade barriers. APEC leaders at the summit urged the European Union to agree to reduce farm subsidies. In a continuation of the climate information sharing initiative established by the APEC Climate Network working group, it was decided by the leaders to install the APEC Climate Center in Busan. Peaceful protests against APEC were staged in Busan, but the meeting schedule was not affected.

At the Leaders' Meeting held on 19 November 2006 in Hanoi, APEC leaders called for a new start to global free-trade negotiations while condemning terrorism and other threats to security. APEC also criticised North Korea for conducting a nuclear test and a missile test launch that year, urging the country to take "concrete and effective" steps toward nuclear disarmament. Concerns about nuclear proliferation in the region was discussed in addition to economic topics. The United States and Russia signed an agreement as part of Russia's bid to join the World Trade Organization.

The APEC Australia 2007 Leaders' Meeting was held in Sydney from 2–9 September 2007. The political leaders agreed to an "aspirational goal" of a 25% reduction of energy intensity correlative with economic development.[32] Extreme security measures including airborne sharpshooters and extensive steel-and-concrete barricades were deployed against anticipated protesters and potential terrorists. However, protest activities were peaceful and the security envelope was penetrated with ease by a spoof diplomatic motorcade manned by members of the Australian television program The Chaser, one of whom was dressed to resemble the Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

The APEC Chile 2019, originally to be held 16–17 November 2019 in Chile, was cancelled due to ongoing protests by sections of its population over inequality, the cost of living and police repression.[33]

The 2023 APEC meeting was notable for a lack of consensuses of group members on their stance over the Russia–Ukraine and Israel–Hamas conflicts as well as consensus for WTO reforms. The meeting between Biden and Xi was also seen as significant in terms of reducing tensions between the US and China.[34]

APEC leaders' group photo

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At the end of the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, the leaders gather for the official APEC Leaders' Family Photo. A tradition has the leaders dressing to reflect the culture of the host member. The tradition dates to the first such meeting in 1993 when then-U.S. President Bill Clinton insisted on informal attire and gave the leaders leather bomber jackets. At the 2010 meeting, Japan had the leaders dress in smart casual rather than the traditional kimono.[35] Similarly, when Honolulu was selected in 2009 as the site for the 2011 APEC meeting, U.S. President Barack Obama joked that he looked forward to seeing the leaders dressed in "flowered shirts and grass skirts". After viewing previous photos, and concerned that having the leaders dress in aloha shirts might give the wrong impression during a period of economic austerity, Obama instead decided it might be time to end the tradition. Leaders were given a specially designed aloha shirt as a gift but were not expected to wear it for the photo.[36] Leaders in Bali, Indonesia at the 2013 conference wore a batik outfit; in China 2014 Tang suit jackets; in the Philippines 2015 barong tagalogs; in Peru 2016 vicuña wool shawls; in 2017 Vietnamese silk shirts.[37]

APEC Summits

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Criticism

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APEC has been criticised for promoting free trade agreements that would impose restrictions on national and local laws, which regulate and ensure labour rights, environmental protection and safe and affordable access to medicine.[38] According to the organisation, it is "the premier forum for facilitating economic growth, cooperation, trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region" established to "further enhance economic growth and prosperity for the region and to strengthen the Asia-Pacific community".[39] The effectiveness and fairness of its role has been questioned, especially from the viewpoints of European countries that cannot take part in APEC[40] and Pacific Island nations that cannot participate but stand to be affected by its decisions.

See also

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Other organisations of coastal states

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b c Due to the complexities of the relations between it and Communist China (officially the People's Republic of China), the Republic of China (ROC or "Taiwan"; retroactively known as Nationalist China) is not represented under its official various names such as the "Republic of China", "Nationalist China" or "Taiwan". Instead, it participates in APEC under the name "Chinese Taipei". The President of the Republic of China cannot attend the annual APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in person. Instead, it is generally represented by a ministerial-level official responsible for economic affairs or someone designated by the president. See List of Chinese Taipei Representatives to APEC.
  2. ^ Hong Kong joined APEC in 1991 during British administration with the name "Hong Kong." In 1997, Hong Kong became a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China and took the name "Hong Kong, China."
  3. ^ The de jure head of government of China is the Premier, whose current holder is Li Qiang. The President of China is legally a ceremonial office, but the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (de facto leader in one-party communist state) has always held this office since 1993 except for the months of transition, and the current general secretary is Xi Jinping.

References

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  1. ^ "What is APEC?". November 2018. Archived from the original on 11 December 2021. Retrieved 26 November 2020 – via YouTube.
  2. ^ a b "Member Economies". APEC. Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  3. ^ Elek, Andrew (30 September 2005). "Back to Canberra: Founding APEC". PECC. Archived from the original on 18 September 2020. Retrieved 12 November 2017. ASEAN's series of post-ministerial consultations,launched in the mid-1980s, had demonstrated the feasibility and value of regular consultations among ministerial-level representatives of both developed and developing economies.
  4. ^ a b "History". APEC. Archived from the original on 4 March 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2018. The idea of APEC was firstly publicly broached by former prime minister of Australia Bob Hawke during a speech in Seoul, Korea, on 31 January 1989. Ten months later, 12 Asia-Pacific economies met in Canberra to establish APEC.
  5. ^ a b Elek, Andrew. "Back to Canberra: Founding APEC". Pacific Economic Cooperation Council. Archived from the original on 29 March 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  6. ^ "What is APEC and what can it do for business?" (PDF). National Center for APEC. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 July 2011. The APEC Secretariat is based in Singapore. The Secretariat is staffed by 20 diplomats seconded from APEC member economies and by 20 local staff.
  7. ^ Chu, Shulong (1 February 2017). "The East Asia Summit: Looking for an Identity". Brookings. Archived from the original on 25 September 2020. Retrieved 18 September 2018. APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) is the oldest such forum and is generally recognized as the highest-level multilateral process in Asia-Pacific.
  8. ^ "Achievements and Benefits". apec.org. Archived from the original on 30 October 2020. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  9. ^ "How Could The 2016 APEC Forum Affect The World Economy?". FXCM. 9 January 2017. Archived from the original on 16 September 2018. The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum represents a potentially large-scale trade area that, when functioning in a concerted manner, could in the future work to shift the axis of global manufacturing and trade away from the North Atlantic–European region toward the Pacific. [...] But the future of the bloc, which represents more than 50% of the world's GDP, may be in suspense.
  10. ^ Parreñas, Julius Caesar (January 1998). "ASEAN and Asia-Pacific economic cooperation". The Pacific Review. 11 (2): 233–248. doi:10.1080/09512749808719255.
  11. ^ What Context does the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC)Provide for Employment Relations? (PDF) (Report). Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 August 2018. APEC represents the most dynamic economic region in the world, having generated nearly 70 per cent of global economic growth in its first 10 years [...].
  12. ^ Conditions not right for APEC attendance: Ma Archived 17 November 2020 at the Wayback Machine. The China Post (27 August 2013). Retrieved 12 April 2014.
  13. ^ "Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation -". apec.org. Archived from the original on 5 December 2020. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  14. ^ "Invitees and International Organizations | G20 Foundation". Archived from the original on 21 February 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  15. ^ "Deputy PM meets US State Secretary on G20 meeting sidelines – Embassy of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in the United States". vietnamembassy-usa.org. Archived from the original on 3 November 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  16. ^ "1995 APEC Ministerial Meeting". APEC. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  17. ^ "1995 APEC Ministerial Meeting | 1995 APEC Ministerial Meeting". APEC. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  18. ^ "Apec leaders' summit to be virtual". Bangkok Post. Kyodo News. 4 September 2020. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  19. ^ "New Zealand to host virtual APEC in 2021". The Beehive. 30 June 2020. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  20. ^ a b "Statement by Prime Minister of Thailand on APEC". APEC. 10 February 2022. Archived from the original on 17 November 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  21. ^ "Calendar – Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation 2023". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  22. ^ "Remarks by Vice President Harris on the Indo-Pacific Region". The White House. 24 August 2021. Archived from the original on 25 August 2021. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  23. ^ "2023 APEC Leaders' Golden Gate Declaration". The White House. 18 November 2023. Statement 16. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  24. ^ "Calendar - Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation 2023". United States Department of State. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  25. ^ Pue, W. Wesley (2000). Pepper in our Eyes: the APEC Affair. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: UBC Press. ISBN 978-0-7748-0779-1.
  26. ^ Wallace, Bruce (21 September 1998). "APEC Protest Controversy". Maclean's via The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Foundation of Canada. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 6 September 2006.
  27. ^ Nuttall-Smith, Chris (27 November 1997). "APEC summit gets nasty at UBC". Varsity News. Sarah Galashan. Varsity Publications, Inc. Archived from the original on 13 October 2006. Retrieved 6 September 2006.
  28. ^ Schmidt, Sarah (6 January 1998). "Student protesters fight back for civil rights". Varsity News. Varsity Publications, Inc. Archived from the original on 13 October 2006. Retrieved 6 September 2006.
  29. ^ "Civil rights group denounces attack on UBC students' APEC protests" (Press release). British Columbia Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA). 23 November 1997. Archived from the original on 5 October 2006. Retrieved 6 September 2006.
  30. ^ "Student member of BCCLA executive arrested!" (Press release). British Columbia Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA). 25 November 1997. Archived from the original on 5 October 2006. Retrieved 6 September 2006.
  31. ^ Bonner, David Johnston With Raymond (15 August 2003). "Suspect in Indonesia Bombings Is Captured in Asia". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  32. ^ "Apec supports nuclear, agrees climate targets". World Nuclear News. 10 September 2007. Archived from the original on 4 October 2007. Retrieved 15 September 2007.
  33. ^ Phillips, Tom; Watts, Jonathan; Franklin, Jonathan (30 October 2019). "Chilean president cancels Apec and climate summits amid wave of unrest". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  34. ^ "Apec summit ends with unity on WTO reform but not Gaza or Ukraine". The Guardian. 18 November 2023. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 22 November 2023.
  35. ^ "No kimonos for APEC leaders in Japan". Reuters. 11 November 2010. Archived from the original on 15 November 2010. Retrieved 12 November 2010.
  36. ^ "No aloha for Hawaiian shirts at APEC family photo". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. 13 November 2011. Archived from the original on 16 October 2015. Retrieved 13 November 2011.
  37. ^ "Awkward Apec Fashion: what the world leaders wore". The Guardian. 8 November 2018. Archived from the original on 9 November 2018. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  38. ^ Gerhardt, Tina (11 November 2011). "America's Pacific Century?: APEC Summit in Hawaii Seeks to Implement Free Trade Agreement of the Asia Pacific Region". Commondreams. Archived from the original on 27 May 2013. Retrieved 26 December 2012.
  39. ^ "About APEC – Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation". Archived from the original on 19 November 2010.
  40. ^ "APEC—a pretty empty chatter". The Economist. 12 September 2007. Archived from the original on 8 February 2009. Retrieved 26 May 2008.

Further reading

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