[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 35, Number 37 (Monday, September 20, 1999)]
[Pages 1727-1732]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]
<R04>
Remarks to American and Asian Business Leaders in Auckland
September 12, 1999
Thank you very much, and good morning. Ambassador Bolger, thank you
for the fine introduction and for the years of friendship and
cooperation we have enjoyed. Prime Minister Shipley, thank you for being
here today and for making my family and me and our American group feel
so welcome in New Zealand.
Since this is the sort of economic engine of APEC, all of you, I do
want to note that my mother-in-law and my daughter and I did our part to
support the New Zealand economy yesterday, and we got some nice free
press for doing it, in the newspaper. I appreciate that.
I'd like to thank Jack Smith, who is up here with us, the CEO of
General Motors, for his leadership, and those of the other American
business leaders--John Maasland, the CEO of APEC; Ambassador Beeman. I'd
also like to thank the American team who is here with me--our Secretary
of State, Madeleine Albright; our Trade Representative, Charlene
Barshefsky; National Security Adviser Sandy Berger; and National
Economic Adviser Gene Sperling.
I am delighted to be here in Auckland for the last gathering of
Asia-Pacific leaders in the 20th century. We primarily deal with
economic issues, but today, if you'll forgive me, I'd like to begin with
a few comments about security issues, because the eyes of the world
today, not just in Asia but throughout the globe, are on East Timor,
where the people voted overwhelmingly for independence, where, I
believe, Indonesia's Government did the right thing in supporting the
vote, just as it did the right thing in holding its own free elections
earlier this year.
Now it is clear, however, that the Indonesian military has aided and
abetted militia violence in East Timor, in violation of the commitment
of its leaders to the international community. This has allowed the
militias to murder innocent people, to send thousands fleeing for their
lives, to attack the United Nations compound.
The United States has suspended all military cooperation,
assistance, and sales to Indonesia. I have made clear that my
willingness to support future economic assistance from the international
community will depend upon how Indonesia handles the situation from
today forward. We are carefully reviewing all our own economic and
commercial programs there. The present course of action is imperiling
Indonesia's future, as well as that of the individual East Timorese.
The Indonesian Government and military must not only stop what they
are doing but reverse course. They must halt the violence not just in
Dili but throughout the nation. They must permit humanitarian assistance
and let the U.N. mission do its job. They must allow the East Timorese
who have been pushed from their homes to return safely.
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They must implement the results of the balloting, and they must allow an
international force to help restore security.
We are ready to support an effort led by Australia to mobilize a
multinational force to help to bring security to East Timor under U.N.
auspices. We all have a great deal at stake in the resolution of this
crisis. We have a strong interest in seeing an Indonesia that is stable,
prosperous, and democratic, the largest Muslim country in the world, a
nation where soldiers are honored for their commitment to defend the
people, not to abuse them--all of that has been called into question in
the last few days. We don't want to see the will of the people
overturned by violence and intimidation. And because the U.N. helped to
organize the vote in East Timor, we have a special responsibility to
help to see it through, to stand up to those who now break their
promises to the international community.
It is not just the people of East Timor who deserve a democratic
future, though they do. It is not just the people of Indonesia who have
embraced their own choices in a free election, though they, too, deserve
a democratic future. We must help both the people of East Timor and the
democratic process in Indonesia because the world community seeks to
have the integrity of democracy protected everywhere. And today, again I
say, the eyes of the world are on that tiny place and on those poor
innocent, suffering people.
I would also like to say just a couple of other words about security
issues. I will meet here with President Kim and Prime Minister Obuchi to
discuss peace and reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula. The people of
North Korea need food and opportunities. They need engagement with the
south and the chance for a brighter future. They do not need new
weaponry that threatens the security of the region and the world.
I would also like to say a word about China and the present tensions
between China and Taiwan. The United States has enjoyed friendly
relations with both China and Taiwan for some years now. Our policy has
been rooted in our commitment to one China, our commitment to a peaceful
resolution of the differences between China and Taiwan, our commitment
to continuously expanding the cross-strait dialog. We have a clear
policy enunciated in the three communiques and in our Taiwan Relations
Act.
I reaffirmed to President Jiang yesterday, and I will do what I can
to support while I am here and after I leave here, the proposition that
these peoples have too much at stake in a peaceful future, benefiting
all their--all--their children to let the present difficulties
deteriorate into a confrontation in which, in the end, all would suffer.
I hope all of you, to the extent that you can, will reaffirm that
course.
Let me say that, returning to economics, this is a much happier
occasion than the last APEC meeting. I think the uniform of the day for
the business people sort of illustrates that. [Laughter] Last year you
might have met in straitjackets. [Laughter] But economies that were
going downhill then, now seem to be clearly on the road to recovery.
Just for example, South Korea's industry has produced 30 percent
more this June than last. Its economy is expected to grow at least 6\1/
2\ percent this year. All over the region, key stock markets are now
above pre-crisis levels, currencies are stronger, workers are going back
to work.
And for every one of you that had something to do with this
recovery, I want to express my thanks to the businesses that had to
tighten their belts, but pressed ahead; to the governments that had to
pursue difficult, but vital reforms; to the international community
which mobilized over $100 billion in assistance and applied it wisely;
to the countries which, like the United States, kept our markets open to
keep the crisis from becoming worse and to help it turn around more
quickly.
Still, the consequences of the last couple of years have been quite
severe. Far too many people lost their jobs, their businesses, and their
dreams. There are longstanding concerns about stability, openness, human
rights, and the environment which remain.
Therefore, the main thing I want to say about economics today is
that this is not a time for complacency. There is still hard work to be
done and a great deal to be won on the eve of this new millennium.
Here in Auckland, we should put APEC's weight behind the new trade
round to be
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launched at the WTO meeting in Seattle. We should continue to reform the
global financial architecture. We must work together to promote
stability, as well as peace.
We, in the United States, knew when this crisis started that we had
to work in all these ways. We have worked on the global financial
architecture. We have worked to try to promote a new round of world
trade. We also, remembering the awful experience of the Great
Depression, worked hard to keep our markets open. For the first half of
1999, our trade deficit was more than double what it was in the first
half of 1997.
But I think it is clear that that decision, even though it's
somewhat controversial in the United States, was the right decision for
American workers and for American businesses because we always need to
be looking at the long term and the prospects of creating a global
economy in which there is more trade, not less.
With 45 percent of the world's trade, the APEC nations have a vital
interest in whether we take this direction or not. We can lead the way
to a stronger, fairer, world trade system just as we did with the
information technology agreement 3 years ago with APEC. Our APEC
ministers already have backed an ambitious trade agenda; now it's time
for the leaders to follow suit.
When we get to Seattle, we should then try to make APEC's agenda the
world's agenda. We should be committed strongly to dramatic increase of
market access in agricultural, industrial, and service areas. We should
be committed to reaching some other agreements along the way during the
process of the trade round--for example, to keep the information
superhighway free of tolls, with a permanent moratorium on electronic
commerce duties--to improve openness in government procurement, to speed
up tariff liberalization in all the key areas we've identified. And I
also believe we should be committed to completing the entire round
within 3 years. Our citizens shouldn't have to wait any longer for
governments to get a job like this done.
A strong world trading system is good for all the nations of the
region. It is certainly good for the United States, where about a third
of our economic growth came from expanded trade until the Asian
financial crisis. Over a third of our agricultural products are
exported. One in 10 of our jobs depends on exports; millions more depend
on our ability to import. In our country, we have had remarkable growth
with low inflation, thanks in no small measure to greater competition.
The world trading system will be even more beneficial as more
nations commit to play by its rules. Yesterday I had a very good meeting
with President Jiang. And China and the United States reaffirmed our
commitment to China's entry into the WTO on commercially viable terms. I
hope we can make it happen soon. I want to assure you--every one of
you--that we are working hard to make it happen soon.
I also believe strongly that our world trading system will grow in
popular support if it supports our values. And I mean values that are
generally shared by civilized nations across cultural, religious, and
regional lines. Twice in the last year or so, I have gone to Geneva to
talk about a world trading system for the 21st century and the
importance of honoring our values when it comes to labor, when it comes
to the environment, when it comes to the openness with which powerful
bodies make their decisions.
Just as we will continue to enforce our trade laws at home to ensure
fair competition, we will continue to address what I believe are
commitments all of our people really want us to embrace--to decent
working conditions and to the health of the global environment.
This will not be, however, about erecting new barriers, but about
lifting the lives of all people. I am very pleased, for example, that
the delegates at the International Labor Organization unanimously
adopted a convention banning the worst forms of child labor.
I am encouraged by our common commitment to address the challenge of
global warming. Let me say this is still a very contentious issue among
some developing and some developed countries. There are many developing
countries that honestly believe that developed countries will use the
whole climate change debate as a way of slowing economic opportunity for
people in developing countries.
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I completely disagree with that. Those who hold this view believe
that the only way to grow an economy in the 21st century is with the
same energy use patterns we saw in the 20th century. But if you talk to
Mr. Smith--and, Jack, I read your press in the morning paper today--and
what did he say? He said there are three dramatic changes going on in
the automobile industry. One is in commerce--GM sells its first car in
Taiwan over the Internet. Two is that cars are becoming automated
information, communications, and entertainment systems, self-contained.
And three is that the internal combustion engine is being changed in
fundamental ways. And before we know it, there will be both blended-fuel
and alternative-fuel vehicles which will be emitting far less greenhouse
gases into the atmosphere, in ways that accelerate economic growth
rather than diminish it.
So I'm going on--as you can see, I'm not looking at my text here;
this is something I really believe. One of the central--the world works
by adherence to our departure from big ideas. And we organize ourselves
around them, and then people like you do real well when you figure out
how to improve on them, modify them, find a little niche in which to
move. But if you stay with a big idea that's wrong too long, no matter
how good the rest of our creativity is, we all get in trouble. And no
matter how hard we work, we get in trouble, because we work harder and
harder and harder at the wrong things.
So I just want to say--I only get to make one more of these
speeches, and then I'll be gone. [Laughter] I'll be an ex big idea,
right? It will be over. [Laughter] One of the big ideas the world has to
abandon is the idea that the only way to build a modern, prosperous
economy is with the industrial energy use patterns of a former era. It
is not true.
And when you look at the future of China, when you look at the
future of India, when you look at all the other developing economies,
and you imagine what you can do with the cell phone, with the Internet,
and with alternative energy development, a lot of very poor places in
Africa and Asia and other parts of the world can skip a whole generation
of economic development unless we stay in chains to a big idea that is
no longer true.
I hope you will help to lead the way to bring the developing and the
developed countries together around finding new technologies that will
both improve the economy and the environment at the same time.
Finally, let me say, I am very grateful that there is a growing
recognition that the world trading system and the WTO itself should be
more open and accountable. I think this is very, very important. I think
that there's a lot of controversy about it from time to time on the
specifics, but in the end, greater accountability and greater openness
and greater involvement of all elements of society in these
decisionmakings will build greater support for a global economic system.
I'd like to say just a few words about the global economic
architecture, if I might. I think there's a real danger that I sense
growing of people to say, ``Well, things are fine now; we don't need to
continue to do anything about the economics of the financial
architecture.'' I think that's a mistake.
The Asian financial crisis came after a high tide of capital washed
into the region, often highly leveraged, flowing quickly into countries
without adequate risk assessment. When the tide receded just as rapidly,
if not more rapidly, it left behind a legacy of mounting debt,
devaluation, and severe dislocation.
For us in the United States, the crisis underscored our tremendous
stake in the stability and success of Asia. It demonstrated how closely
tied our economies had become. And as our Asian markets dried up, our
companies, our banks, our workers, our farmers clearly felt the effects.
We've been seeking new ways to help the international system
moderate the cycle of boom and bust in much the way that individual
economies have learned to do since the Great Depression. We are working
more closely to make sure that all, including the developing economies,
have a seat at the table, through new mechanisms like the financial
stability forum. I just want to urge you all to keep this progress on
course.
Emerging economies, of course, have work to do--they still have to
continue to restructure their banking systems, make their corporations
more accountable, reduce reliance
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on short-term loans, encourage greater direct investment. Creditor
nations must improve our own financial supervision and regulation so
investors will assess risks more carefully and banks will lend more
wisely.
The IMF now has special financing available to help a country head
off a financial contagion--something we in the United States worked very
had to set up--provided the country has maintained responsible economic
policies. We must continue to develop such tools.
Working with the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, we must
also strengthen safety nets so people have unemployment insurance and
job training, so that impoverished children are not the first and
hardest hit victims of an economic downturn. We must, in short, continue
our efforts to put a human face on the global economy--not because it is
charity, but because it is the right thing to do from a humane, as well
as from an economic standpoint. It is essential to the long-term success
of the market. An active role for government is important not to
restrain competition or to dictate the flow of investment, but to ensure
fair dealing and a level playing field.
New Zealand is leading efforts to broaden competition in domestic
markets. The United States and other APEC partners are working with the
private sector across the region to make it easier to move goods and
services across borders. Our economies will work even better when we
have stronger standards for disclosure by businesses and governments.
One of our leaders made a comment the other day that I kind of
wished I had made because I thought it was so clever. Speaking of the
broad consensus for greater openness, President Estrada said, ``Now,
when Alan Greenspan and the common people have the same view, we should
listen.'' [Laughter] I don't know whether Mr. Greenspan liked that, but
I liked it very much. [Laughter]
Let me say in one last point, I think more openness, more honesty,
more responsibility in our business dealings gives us a more supportive
political system and, therefore, gives us better economic results. I
don't believe nations can reap the full benefits of the technology
revolution if the free flow of information is curbed, for example. I
think entrepreneurs and investors will flee nations where the most
lucrative deals are made in secret, where contracts aren't honored,
where courts aren't fair, where creativity is stifled, where there are
grievous worker complaints.
Instead, I think they will be drawn to countries where there's
fairness and openness and freedom, good education system, and broad
participation in the prosperity of the nation. These things are
important to all of us.
So I say I'm glad you're here in these relaxed jackets instead of
straitjackets this year. I'm grateful for what all of you have done to
support APEC and its trade liberalization agenda and, specifically, to
help lead the nations of Asia out of its financial crisis. But there is
still a great deal for us to do together to expand trade, to strengthen
the financial architecture, to strengthen the conditions among and
within nations for success of the global economy with a human face, and
to provide the basic framework of security without which economies
cannot grow freely.
On balance, I think one would have to be quite optimistic looking
toward the new millennium. But I think we also would have to be quite
sober in the price that we will pay if any of us should fail to fulfill
our responsibility. If we work hard at the right things, our children
will live in a much better world.
Thank you very much.
Note: The President spoke at 9:35 a.m. at the New Zealand National
Maritime Museum. In his remarks, he referred to New Zealand Ambassador
to the U.S. James B. Bolger; Prime Minister Jennifer Shipley of New
Zealand; President Clinton's mother-in-law, Dorothy Rodham; U.S.
Ambassador to New Zealand Josiah H. Beeman; President Kim Dae-jung of
South Korea; Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi of Japan; President Jiang Zemin
of China; and President Joseph Estrada of the Philippines.
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