Clark cautious on Apec summit outcome

LOS CABOS - Prime Minister Helen Clark has cautiously welcomed some aspects of today's declaration by leaders at the Apec summit conferences, but still believes the 21-nation group should take a stronger stand on trade liberalisation.

At the end of the two-day summit of Asian and Pacific countries, a joint communique set out a series of aims, objectives and commitments to achieve goals -- set in 1994 -- of free trade among developed member states by 2010 and by 2020 for developing countries in the organisation.

It appears to be little different to the declaration of previous years, and since 1994 there has been very slow progress towards its objectives.

"I personally don't think it's as concrete as some of the declarations we've seen in the past -- last year there was a specific action plan, this one doesn't break substantially new ground," Miss Clark told reporters just before she left for home.

"I think Apec has slipped behind as a leader (on trade liberalisation).

"It was out in front, but we're now halfway towards 2010 and there are major economies, like the US, which have gone back on protectionism.

"Japan just won't concede anything on agricultural protectionism.

"Unless that changes, Apec is going to be behind the game, not ahead of it."

Miss Clark was asked about complaints raised at the summit by some of the small countries.

Philippines President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, for example, accused the big economies of preaching liberalisation and practising protectionism.

Miss Clark said there was no question that developing economies wanted access to markets, and they were mostly primary producers.

"But around the table of Apec we have the two wealthiest economies -- the US and Japan, and also Canada -- who exhibit quite a high degree of protectionism in agriculture," she said.

"The language in the communique is about bridging the gap - that was strongly driven by Mexico -- but that has to be done by countries when they get back home, and we haven't seen that yet."

The declaration strongly denounced terrorism, which Miss Clark agreed with, but she has previously criticised a lack of interest by member states about dealing with the causes of terrorism.

Today she said there had been a better approach to that during the final session of the conference.

"I spoke today of the need to address the causes of terrorism," she said.

"That was picked up by Singapore, which talked about one in five of the world's population being Islamic and the rest of the world needing to build bridges with that (Islamic) world.

"That's very much in line with my own thinking."

Miss Clark said she did not think Apec was a "waste of time", as one questioner put it.

"The main value is that leaders get round a table and talk in a reasonably frank way about their own economies and their issues...at the leaders' level it is the personal interaction that counts the most."

- NZPA