Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 30 Issue 46 (Monday, November 21, 1994)

[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 30, Number 46 (Monday, November 21, 1994)]
[Pages 2400-2403]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

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APEC Economic Leaders' Declaration of Common Resolve, Bogor, Indonesia

November 15, 1994

1. We, the economic leaders of APEC, came together in Bogor,
Indonesia today to chart the future course of our economic cooperation
which will enhance the prospects of an accelerated, balanced and
equitable economic growth not only in the Asia Pacific region but
throughout the world as well.
2. A year ago on Blake Island in Seattle, USA, we recognized that
our diverse economies are becoming more interdependent and are moving
toward a community of Asia Pacific economies. We have issued a vision
statement in which we pledged:
--to find cooperative solutions to the challenges of our rapidly
changing regional and global economy;
--to support an expanding world economy and an open multilateral
trading system;
--to continue to reduce barriers to trade and investment to enable
goods, services and capital to flow freely among our economies;
--to ensure that our people share the benefits of economic growth,
improve education and training, link our economies through
advances in telecommunication and transportation, and use our
resources sustainably.
3. We set our vision for the community of Asia Pacific economies
based on a recognition of the growing interdependence of our
economically diverse region, which comprises developed, newly
industrializing and developing economies. The Asia Pacific
industrialized economies will provide opportunities for developing
economies to increase

[[Page 2401]]

further their economic growth and their level of development. At the
same time developing economies will strive to maintain high growth rates
with the aim of attaining the level of prosperity now enjoyed by the
newly industrializing economies. The approach will be coherent and
comprehensive, embracing the three pillars of sustainable growth,
equitable development and national stability. The narrowing gap in the
stages of development among the Asia Pacific economies will benefit all
members and promote the attainment of Asia Pacific economic progress as
a whole.
4. As we approach the twenty-first century, APEC needs to reinforce
economic cooperation in the Asia Pacific region on the basis of equal
partnership, shared responsibility, mutual respect, common interest, and
common benefit, with the objective of APEC leading the way in:
--strengthening the open multilateral trading system;
--enhancing trade and investment liberalization in Asia Pacific; and
--intensifying Asia Pacific development cooperation.
5. As the foundation of our market-driven economic growth has been
the open multilateral trading system, it is fitting that APEC builds on
the momentum generated by the outcome of the Uruguay Round of
Multilateral Trade Negotiations and takes the lead in strengthening the
open multilateral trading system.
We are pleased to note the significant contribution APEC made in
bringing about a successful conclusion of the Uruguay Round. We agree to
carry out our Uruguay Round commitments fully and without delay and call
on all participants in the Uruguay Round to do the same.
To strengthen the open multilateral trading system we decide to
accelerate the implementation of our Uruguay Round commitments and to
undertake work aimed at deepening and broadening the out come of the
Uruguay Round. We also agree to commit ourselves to our continuing
process of unilateral trade and investment liberalization. As evidence
of our commitment to the open multilateral trading system we further
agree to a standstill under which we will endeavour to refrain from
using measures which would have the effect of increasing levels of
protection.
We call for the successful launching of the World Trade Organization
(WTO). Full and active participation in and support of the WTO by all
APEC economies is key to our ability to lead the way in strengthening
the multilateral trading system. We call on all non-APEC members of the
WTO to work together with APEC economies toward further multilateral
liberalization.
6. With respect to our objective of enhancing trade and investment
in Asia Pacific, we agree to adopt the long-term goal of free and open
trade and investment in Asia Pacific. This goal will be pursued promptly
by further reducing barriers to trade and investment and by promoting
the free flow of goods, services and capital among our economies. We
will achieve this goal in a GATT-consistent manner and believe our
actions will be a powerful impetus for further liberalization at the
multilateral level to which we remain fully committed.
We further agree to announce our commitment to complete the
achievement of our goal of free and open trade and investment in Asia
Pacific no later than the year 2020. The pace of implementation will
take into account the differing levels of economic development among
APEC economies, with the industrialized economies achieving the goal of
free and open trade and investment no later than the year 2010 and
developing economies no later than the year 2020.
We wish to emphasize our strong opposition to the creation of an
inward-looking trading bloc that would divert from the pursuit of global
free trade. We are determined to pursue free and open trade and
investment in Asia Pacific in a manner that will encourage and
strengthen trade and investment liberalization in the world as a whole.
Thus, the out come of trade and investment liberalization in Asia
Pacific will not only be the actual reduction of barriers among APEC
economies but also between APEC economies and non-APEC economies. In
this respect we will give particular attention to our trade with non-
APEC developing countries to ensure that they will also benefit from our
trade and investment liberalisation, in conformity with GATT/WTO
provisions.

[[Page 2402]]

7. To complement and support this substantial process of
liberalisation, we decide to expand and accelerate APEC's trade and
investment facilitation programs. This will promote further the flow of
goods, services and capital among APEC economies by eliminating
administrative and other impediments to trade and investment.
We emphasize the importance of trade facilitation because trade
liberalization efforts alone are insufficient to generate trade
expansion. Efforts at facilitating trade are important if the benefits
of trade are to be truly enjoyed by both business and consumers. Trade
facilitation has also a pertinent role in furthering our goal of
achieving the fullest liberalization within the global context.
In particular we ask our ministers and officials to submit proposals
on APEC arrangements on customs, standards, investment principles and
administrative barriers to market access.
To facilitate regional investment flows and to strengthen APEC's
dialogue on economic policy issues, we agree to continue the valuable
consultations on economic growth strategies, regional capital flows and
other macro-economic issues.
8. Our objective to intensify development cooperation among the
community of Asia Pacific economies will enable us to develop more
effectively the human and natural resources of the Asia Pacific region
so as to attain sustainable growth and equitable development of APEC
economies, while reducing economic disparities among them, and improving
the economic and social well-being of our peoples. Such efforts will
also facilitate the growth of trade and investment in the Asia Pacific
region.
Cooperative programs in this area cover expanded human resource
development (such as education and training and especially improving
management and technical skills), the development of APEC study centres,
cooperation in science and technology (including technology transfer),
measures aimed at promoting small and medium scale enterprises and steps
to improve economic infrastructure, such as energy, transportation,
information, telecommunications and tourism. Effective cooperation will
also be developed on environmental issues, with the aim of contributing
to sustainable development.
Economic growth and development of the Asia Pacific region has
mainly been market-driven, based on the growing interlinkages between
our business sectors in the region to support Asia Pacific economic
cooperation. Recognizing the role of the business sector in economic
development, we agree to integrate the business sector in our programs
and to create an ongoing mechanism for that purpose.
9. In order to facilitate and accelerate our cooperation, we agree
that APEC economies that are ready to initiate and implement a
cooperative arrangement may proceed to do so while those that are not
yet ready to participate may join at a later date.
Trade and other economic disputes among APEC economies have negative
implications for the implementation of agreed cooperative arrangements
as well as for the spirit of cooperation. To assist in resolving such
disputes and in avoiding its recurrence, we agree to examine the
possibility of a voluntary consultative dispute mediation service, to
supplement the WTO dispute settlement mechanism, which should continue
to be the primary channel for resolving disputes.
10. Our goal is an ambitious one. But we are determined to
demonstrate APEC's leadership in fostering further global trade and
investment liberalization. Our goal entails a multiple year effort. We
will start our concerted liberalization process from the very date of
this statement.
We direct our ministers and officials to immediately begin preparing
detailed proposals for implementing our present decisions. The proposals
are to be submitted soon to the APEC economic leaders for their
consideration and subsequent decisions. Such proposals should also
address all impediments to achieving our goal. We ask ministers and
officials to give serious consideration in their deliberations to the
important recommendations contained in the reports of the Eminent
Persons Group and the Pacific Business Forum.
11. We express our appreciation for the important and thoughtful
recommendations contained in the reports of the Eminent Persons Groups
and the Pacific Business Forum.

[[Page 2403]]

The reports will be used as valuable points of reference in formulating
policies in the cooperative framework of the community of Asia Pacific
economies. We agree to ask the two groups to continue with their
activities to provide the APEC economic leaders with assessments of the
progress of APEC and further recommendations for stepping up our
cooperation.
We also ask the Eminent Persons Group and the Pacific Business Forum
to review the interrelationships between APEC and the existing sub-
regional arrangements (AFTA, ANZERTA and NAFTA) and to examine possible
options to prevent obstacles to each other and to promote consistency in
their relations.

Note: The joint statement was made available by the Office of the Press
Secretary but was not issued as a White House press release.