Asia-Pacific Economic Regionalism: Global Constraints and Opportunities

Global economic prosperity and security are vital public goods. They demand co-operation among nation-states for their achievement and maintenance. This fact has been acknowledged in the selection of ‘A World of Differences: Partnerships for the Future’ as the central theme for the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) forum in 2003. The incoming Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat, Piamsak Milintachinda, has affirmed the need for co-operation ‘in pursuit of APEC’s twin goals of enhancing security against terrorist threats while continuing to promote trade growth and economic development within the APEC region’ (APEC 2002: 1). Despite the strength of this rhetorical commitment to regional economic and security co-operation, given the context of a faltering global economy, the October 12 terrorist bombing of Bali and in the light of North Korea’s apparent intention to resume its nuclear programme, the reality of Asia-Pacific regionalism has fallen far short of politicians’ rhetoric. For example, in the field of economic co-operation through regional trade agreements (RTAs), the World Trade Organization (WTO) has noted that the Asia Pacific is ‘the region with the smallest number of RTAs currently in force’ (WTO 2000: 22). Furthermore, while a number of states have been actively considering moving from their established policy of Most Favoured Nation-only trade liberalization towards regional co-operation, the WTO has warned that the ‘open regionalism’ favoured by the APEC may be ‘counteracted by a drive towards preferential trade initiatives’.