ID :
32014
Mon, 11/24/2008 - 21:40
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/32014
The shortlink copeid
APEC leaders voice deep concern over volatile food prices+
LIMA, Nov. 23 Kyodo - Asia-Pacific leaders on Sunday wrapped up their two-day annual meeting in Lima expressing strong concerns about the impact that volatile food and energy prices are having on poverty reduction, and called for measures to boost agricultural market access in the region.
''We are deeply concerned about the impact that volatile global food prices,
combined with food shortages in some developing economies, are having on our
achievements in reducing poverty and lifting real incomes over the last
decade,'' their joint declaration said.
Coupled with the fallout from the global financial crisis, they stressed that
developing economies and the poor are especially vulnerable to unstable
economic conditions.
In an effort to ease the suffering of people especially in developing
countries, the leaders ''directed APEC to increase technical cooperation and
capacity building that will help foster agricultural sector growth.''
The APEC leaders also called for a prompt, ambitious and balanced conclusion to
the Doha Round of trade liberalization talks under the World Trade
Organization, which would deliver substantial improvements in market access and
reduce market-distorting measures in global agricultural trade.
The summit of the 21 Pacific Rim economies and a meeting of their foreign and
trade ministers earlier this week were dominated by discussions linked to the
financial turmoil and free trade.
Before leaving Peru, Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso renewed his determination
to reach an outline deal on the WTO negotiations by the year's end, amid
mounting protectionist sentiment in the wake of the global financial crisis.
''We have to make efforts again,'' Aso said at a news conference in Lima.
But he also noted that each country has different interests and that Japan will
also ''try to get what it wants and try to protect what it needs'' in the
seven-year-old talks.
The highlight of the gathering actually came Saturday on the first day as the
leaders issued a special statement on the global financial crisis, pledging to
take all necessary steps to address the crisis and push for an early free trade
deal under the WTO.
But the leaders, including Chinese President Hu Jintao, Indonesian President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Aso and U.S. President George W. Bush, did not forget
about other key global challenges, including climate change, human security,
and the fight against terrorism, disease and corruption.
On climate change, the leaders welcomed international efforts to work toward
consensus on a long-term target of curbing greenhouse gas emissions.
They reconfirmed the basic principle of the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change, especially that of ''common but differentiated
responsibilities and respective capabilities'' to aim for a new reduction goal
under a post-Kyoto Protocol framework beyond its expiration in 2012.
But unlike the previous APEC summit in Sydney, climate change was not high on
the agenda this year, partly because the process of negotiating a climate
change treaty to replace the Kyoto accord will begin in earnest at a U.N.
conference to be held in Poland next month.
Last year, the leaders agreed to work toward a cut in energy intensity of at
least 25 percent by 2030 with 2005 as the base year in a region-wide effort to
address global warming.
The declaration noted the achievement made at the Group of Eight summit in
Hokkaido, Japan, in July.
At least on the surface, there was no tangible progress in climate change talks
in Lima. But senior Japanese officials seem to have been proud that the
declaration has a reference to the G-8 summit.
''It was not easy to include a clause on the G-8 summit in the declaration,''
as China and many other fast-growing APEC economies are not part of the G-8
framework, one of the Japanese officials said.
In July, the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia
and the United States sought to share the goal of at least halving global
greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 with other major polluters such as China and
India.
To ensure security for their business activities, the APEC economies called on
the international community to strengthen efforts to combat piracy and armed
robbery against ships.
The declaration also said, ''We agreed to leverage our collective will to
combat corruption and related transnational illicit networks by promoting clean
government, supporting public-private partnerships, fostering market integrity
and transparent financial systems.''
To meet these global challenges more adequately, the leaders agreed on the need
to improve APEC's institutional capacity, such as through establishing a policy
support unit and appointing an executive director of the secretariat for a
fixed term.
APEC groups Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia,
Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the
Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States and
Vietnam.
The APEC annual conference will be held next year in Singapore, followed by
Japan in 2010, the United States in 2011 and Russia in 2012.
In the Peruvian capital, Indonesia offered to host the summit in 2013.
==Kyodo
2008-11-24 17:07:35
''We are deeply concerned about the impact that volatile global food prices,
combined with food shortages in some developing economies, are having on our
achievements in reducing poverty and lifting real incomes over the last
decade,'' their joint declaration said.
Coupled with the fallout from the global financial crisis, they stressed that
developing economies and the poor are especially vulnerable to unstable
economic conditions.
In an effort to ease the suffering of people especially in developing
countries, the leaders ''directed APEC to increase technical cooperation and
capacity building that will help foster agricultural sector growth.''
The APEC leaders also called for a prompt, ambitious and balanced conclusion to
the Doha Round of trade liberalization talks under the World Trade
Organization, which would deliver substantial improvements in market access and
reduce market-distorting measures in global agricultural trade.
The summit of the 21 Pacific Rim economies and a meeting of their foreign and
trade ministers earlier this week were dominated by discussions linked to the
financial turmoil and free trade.
Before leaving Peru, Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso renewed his determination
to reach an outline deal on the WTO negotiations by the year's end, amid
mounting protectionist sentiment in the wake of the global financial crisis.
''We have to make efforts again,'' Aso said at a news conference in Lima.
But he also noted that each country has different interests and that Japan will
also ''try to get what it wants and try to protect what it needs'' in the
seven-year-old talks.
The highlight of the gathering actually came Saturday on the first day as the
leaders issued a special statement on the global financial crisis, pledging to
take all necessary steps to address the crisis and push for an early free trade
deal under the WTO.
But the leaders, including Chinese President Hu Jintao, Indonesian President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Aso and U.S. President George W. Bush, did not forget
about other key global challenges, including climate change, human security,
and the fight against terrorism, disease and corruption.
On climate change, the leaders welcomed international efforts to work toward
consensus on a long-term target of curbing greenhouse gas emissions.
They reconfirmed the basic principle of the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change, especially that of ''common but differentiated
responsibilities and respective capabilities'' to aim for a new reduction goal
under a post-Kyoto Protocol framework beyond its expiration in 2012.
But unlike the previous APEC summit in Sydney, climate change was not high on
the agenda this year, partly because the process of negotiating a climate
change treaty to replace the Kyoto accord will begin in earnest at a U.N.
conference to be held in Poland next month.
Last year, the leaders agreed to work toward a cut in energy intensity of at
least 25 percent by 2030 with 2005 as the base year in a region-wide effort to
address global warming.
The declaration noted the achievement made at the Group of Eight summit in
Hokkaido, Japan, in July.
At least on the surface, there was no tangible progress in climate change talks
in Lima. But senior Japanese officials seem to have been proud that the
declaration has a reference to the G-8 summit.
''It was not easy to include a clause on the G-8 summit in the declaration,''
as China and many other fast-growing APEC economies are not part of the G-8
framework, one of the Japanese officials said.
In July, the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia
and the United States sought to share the goal of at least halving global
greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 with other major polluters such as China and
India.
To ensure security for their business activities, the APEC economies called on
the international community to strengthen efforts to combat piracy and armed
robbery against ships.
The declaration also said, ''We agreed to leverage our collective will to
combat corruption and related transnational illicit networks by promoting clean
government, supporting public-private partnerships, fostering market integrity
and transparent financial systems.''
To meet these global challenges more adequately, the leaders agreed on the need
to improve APEC's institutional capacity, such as through establishing a policy
support unit and appointing an executive director of the secretariat for a
fixed term.
APEC groups Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia,
Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the
Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States and
Vietnam.
The APEC annual conference will be held next year in Singapore, followed by
Japan in 2010, the United States in 2011 and Russia in 2012.
In the Peruvian capital, Indonesia offered to host the summit in 2013.
==Kyodo
2008-11-24 17:07:35
