Ministers from nations facing the Pacific Ocean discussed stronger economic ties and the elimination of trade barriers against a backdrop of street clashes between anti-globalization protesters and Chilean police.
The top officials representing 21 economies at the annual APEC summit stressed their commitment Wednesday to WTO negotiations aimed at sealing a treaty that would cut trade barriers around the globe and boost the planet's economy.
"The mood is very upbeat and very positive as far as the WTO is concerned,|" said Australian Trade Minister Mark Vaile.
Vaile made the comments just after the US and Australia settled last-minute differences over a free trade deal, announcing an agreement to take effect in January 2005 that would add billions of dollars in new trade benefits for both nations.
But demonstrators who believe free trade benefits only rich nations took to the streets and protested, despite being pushed back repeatedly by Chilean police spraying tear gas from jeeps and blasts of water from military-style trucks.
The protesters, also upset by US President George W. Bush's upcoming weekend visit to the APEC conference, were knocked to the ground as they fled, pedestrians ran for cover and businesses shut their doors.
But the crowd of mostly university students managed to regroup, shutting down traffic and yelling, "Get out of here, Bush," and "We don't want to be an American colony."
The protests ended after several hours and did not interrupt the high-level talks taking place at a convention center several kilometers from the Chilean capital's downtown area.
There were no reports of injuries from the clashes on the streets of Santiago, but police detained nearly 400 protesters and took them away in buses. Among those detained and later released was Rodrigo Soto, who heads Amnesty International's Chile office.
Outgoing US Secretary of State Colin Powell arrived in Santiago late Wednesday night to meet with APEC ministers.
He said Bush will talk with other world leaders about fighting corruption and improving global security, but will focus most on promoting free trade.
"[Bush] will be talking about the free trade agreements that we have been entering into, that so many of the APEC members have been entering into with each other," Powell told reporters while traveling to Chile, "And how to bring this under the broader rubric of WTO activities."
Bush is to meet with other APEC leaders, including Chinese Premier Hu Jintao (
Several bilateral meetings between leaders are planned. Hu and Koizumi were expected to meet one-on-one, according to Kyodo News agency, which cited government sources.
Ties between Japan and China have been strained by the incursion of a Chinese nuclear submarine into Japanese waters last week.
Bush is also expected to bring up North Korea during the summit, urging other leaders involved in multinational talks to persuade the reclusive nation to abandon its nuclear ambitions.
Bush administration officials also are expected to press China to change its currency practices.
For more than a year, the Bush administration has been pressuring China to stop linking its currency at a fixed rate to the US dollar, which American manufacturers contend has resulted in the Chinese currency being undervalued by as much as 40 percent. That gives Chinese products a big competitive advantage against American goods.
The Chinese have said they want to move to a more flexible currency system but cannot until they make reforms to the country's financial system. They have given no timetable for when they believe they will be ready to allow their currency's value to be set by market forces.
APEC's members are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the US and Vietnam.
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