Regional Integration: APEC and ASEAN

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Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) was formed in 1989 in recognition of the growing interdependence of Asia-Pacific economies. What began as an informal group with a handful of members has become the primary organization for the promotion of free trade and economic cooperation in the region. Current members are a diverse group, but all share a commitment to sustaining regional and global economic growth through the strengthening of the open multilateral trading system. A series of informal annual meetings began in 1993.

The first was held at Blake Island in Seattle, Washington on November 20th, 1993 and was hosted by U.S. President Bill Clinton. This meeting emphasized achieving economic growth through improvements in education and job training, as well as through the increased labor and capital mobility made possible by advances in telecommunications. The APEC vision also stressed environmentally sustainable economic growth in the hope of making the future more secure for the world's children.

On November 15th, 1994, Indonesia's President Suharto hosted the second meeting of APEC economic leaders. That meeting's Declaration of Common Resolve pledged to achieve free and open trade and investment in the region by 2010 for industrialized economies, and by 2020 for the developing economies. President Suharto stressed the need to simultaneously narrow the gap between rich and poor among the region's economies.

The third meeting took place in Osaka on November 19th, 1995. The Osaka Action Agenda consisted of two parts, the first focused on trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, and the second on economic and technical cooperation in energy and transportation, ...