- Daesung News
- Read the latest news featuring Daesung Group
| Title | Impending APEC Summit | 2005.11.06 |
|---|---|---|
|
FROM: Last Minute Checks Ensure Successful Meet The countdown will begin tomorrow for the biggest political and economic event ever to be held in Pusan. About 10,000 government and business leaders from 21 countries will gather in Korea's second largest city on Nov. 18 and 19 to further liberalize trade and enhance security. This year's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit is attracting special attention, as it overlaps with the six-nation talks to diffuse Pyongyang's nuclear threat. The two events should bring about changes to the two Koreas. As the 21 top leaders will confirm, the Korean Peninsula is the last vestige of the Cold War. The coming event is a good opportunity to discuss turning this remnant into a springboard for peace and co-prosperity. North Korea should therefore attend it as a special guest. We hope the six countries attain substantive progress in the nuclear talks to make the Pusan (or Busan) APEC summit an Asian version of the "Malta conference" in 1989, at which the United States and Soviet Union declared an end to the Cold War. Economically, playing host to the annual summit will bring Korea about $30 million in additional tourism revenue plus $84 billion in foreign direct investment. The host city, Korea's largest port, also can take several steps towards its goal of becoming a regional logistics hub. As the name of the regional forum signifies, however, participants are likely to share bigger benefits by resolving to reduce corruption and opening markets, such as by unifying regional rules for free trade accords. Koreans, and Pusan citizens in particular, will suffer various inconveniences, from traffic problems to delayed yearly state exams for college entrance. More serious, however, are the pent-up complaints of isolated groups like farmers and the urban poor, side-effects of economic globalization. The police have decided to prevent any protest near conference sites, blocking the entry of nearly 1,000 international activists and keeping a close watch on 400 others. We think peaceful and justified demonstrations should be allowed. The problem, however, is the possible infiltration by terrorists, either independently or disguised as protestors. In the wake of terrorist attacks in London and Bali, it has become clear that any country can be a target. Korea's dispatch of the third-largest military contingent to Iraq is an additional cause of concern. The organizers must do everything they can to prevent barbaric, inhumane acts of violence from occurring here. Most important for the successful hosting of the summit is the voluntary cooperation of the people, particularly in anti-terrorism efforts. The Korea Times, the only media outlet to publish an official newspaper for the APEC Summit 2005, has also activated a special team to better convey the efforts of the conference to promote regional peace and prosperity, both here and abroad. 11-06-2005 16:32 |
||
| NO | Title | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 27 | APEC2005 CEO Summit, Program | 2005.11.10 |
| 26 | APEC 2005 Korea Schedule | 2005.11.10 |
| 25 | Celebrate the 10th Anniversary of t... | 2005.11.08 |
| 24 | ABAC, Fourth Meeting for 2005 | 2005.11.08 |
| 23 | Impending APEC Summit | 2005.11.06 |
