

East-West Center in the News


(2011-11-08) "I think the Obama administration is about to realize a pretty big coup in international commercial diplomacy with the TPP announcement at APEC," said Peter Petri, professor at Brandeis International Business School.

(2011-11-09) -- Also appears in: ISRIA (registration), Middle East North Africa Financial Network, RTT News, Scoop.co.nz, Shanghai Daily, Xinhua

(2011-11-09) Charles Morrison, East-West Center president and APEC host committee member, said that while Hawaii has been considered as a host site for intergovernmental meetings in the past, until APEC it has never really been considered for a head-of-state-level meeting, Morrison said.
"Hawaii is almost an ideal place for these sorts of meetings. If we do it well and like it, it's something that is a logical business for us and pretty value-added," he said.
Results will depend on the state's ability to follow up after the event, Morrison said.

(2011-11-09) Political scientist Christopher McNally of the East-West Center says the U.S. Congress would probably not approve the agreement if China were included, at least for now. But Vietnam has joined the talks, and he notes that Vietnam is making the same transition. He says APEC is a good forum to reach limited agreements that involve only some of the member nations.
"It's a venue where leaders can get together to discuss facilitation of trade, investment and other economic issues within the Asia-Pacific. But, agreements that are binding tend to be forged at a smaller level because it's very difficult to get all 21 economies to agree on one issue," noted McNally.
... Analyst McNally says American trade agreements are more complex than China's and typically deal with issues other than trade.
"They also include environmental standards, they include labor standards. The include also product standardization, things like that," said McNally.
He says Chinese agreements focus on such basic issues as reducing tariffs and quotas and harmonizing customs standards. -- Also appears in: Chosun Ilbo, Journal of Turkish Weekly, Middle East North Africa Financial Network

(2011-11-10) One of the center's analysts, political scientist Christopher McNally, says the APEC forum is a place for strengthening ties and sharing ideas.
"APEC is an organization that is driven by consensus. It is an organization that is very much collaborative and consultative," he said.
He says that means the important initiatives at APEC are often nation-to-nation. President Obama will hold talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao, Russian President Dimitry Medvedev and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda at the summit.
-- Also appears in: Middle East North Africa Financial Network

(2011-11-10) -- Also appears in over 120 news sources

(2011-11-10) -- Also appears in: Daily Markets, DigitalJournal.com, IT News Online, MarketWatch, Sacramento Bee, Stock Markets Review, SYS-CON Media, TradersHuddle.com, Virtual Press Office, Virtual-Strategy Magazine

(2011-11-09) The leaders of the 21 regional economies "do see freer trade flows as critical to growth and jobs," said Charles Morrison, president of the East-West Center, a think tank in Honolulu.
"The main contribution APEC can make in the short-run is to restore the feeling that the leaders, ministers and central bankers of the major economies are indeed working closely together," he said.
-- Also appears in over 90 news sources

(2011-11-12) -- Also appears in over 80 other news sources


(2011-11-14) -- Also appears in: Jakarta Globe, MSN Malaysia News

(2011-11-11) -- Also appears in: Scoop.co.nz

(2011-11-11) -- Also appears in over 35 other news sources



(2011-11-11) -- Also appears in: Daily News & Analysis, Hindustan Times, IBNLive.com, MSN India, News24online, Zee News

(2011-11-11) -- Also appears in: AsiaOne, Bangladesh News 24 hours, BusinessLIVE, Fox 59, GMANews.TV, Hartford Courant, Jerusalem Post, Malaysia Star, Manoramaonline, Reuters India, The Week, WNEP-TV, WTVR

(2011-11-11) -- Also appears in: Asian Age, Bangkok Post, China Digital Times, Deccan Chronicle, Edmonton Journal, eTaiwan News, Montreal Gazette, MSN Malaysia News, MSN Philippines News, The Province, Radio Netherlands, Straits Times, Vancouver Sun, Victoria Times Colonist, West Australian, Windsor Star


(2011-11-11) -- Also appears in: Channel News Asia, MSN Malaysia News, MSN Philippines News


