The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) was started on January 1989 by Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke when he called for better economic cooperation within the Asia Pacific Region. Currently, the organization has 21 members including, Australia, Japan, Singapore, and United States. At the Bogor summit, APEC started discussions regarding the "Bogor Goals" which aims to reduce tariffs between zero and five percent in industrialized countries by 2010 and developing countries by 2020 (Wikipedia contributors, 2007). APEC had a combined GDP of $6 trillion in 1998 and 42% of global trade. The main advantages of this organization are deregulation, sharing of technology, and policy certainty ("What is APEC?" n.d.). Some disadvantages include selective policy-making to push the agenda of a specific country using intimidation strategies, increased inequality and poverty, anti-democratism, and high costs with respect to human rights violations and environmental damages (Kelsey, n.d.).
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is another organization that not only encompasses economic but also political and cultural cooperation. It started on August 1967 in order to oppose communist expansion of Vietnam. The member countries include Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines. ASEAN's aim is to implement the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA), enhance the region's attractiveness for investment and tourism, and enhancing industrial efficiency and usage of environmental resources ("Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN" n.d.).
The Dominican Republic - Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) is another free trade agreement that includes the United States, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic. Like the NAFTA, CAFTA also has the same objectives of creating a free trade zone that will reduce tariffs on U.S. exports...
However, it also suffers from the same disadvantages with regards to labor and environmental problems.
Bibliography
Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN" (n.d.) Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://www.itcilo.it/english/actrav/telearn/global/ilo/blokit/asean.htm
European Union" (n.d.) Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://experts.about.com/e/e/eu/European_Union.htm
International Organisations - the European Union" (n.d) Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://oxfam.org.uk/coolplanet/milkingit/information/international_orgs/international_orgs_eu.htm
Ahmad, Pengiran Mashor Pengiran (2003). "East Asia Economic Community: Prospects and Implications" Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://www.aseansec.org/15655.htm
Kelsey, Jane (n.d.) "East Timor Alert Network - Demystifying APEC" Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://www.redeagle.com/etanbc/drk.html
Royo, Sebastian (2002). "NAFTA: Origins" Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://www.cas.suffolk.edu/royo/CAS393/MEX7/index.htm
What is APEC?" (n.d.) Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://www.insme.org/documenti/SMEGuide2000.pdf
Wikipedia contributors (2007). "Association of Southeast Asian Nations." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asean
Wikipedia contributors (2007). "Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAFTA
Wikipedia contributors (2007). "North American Free Trade Agreement." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_Free_Trade_Agreement
Wikipedia contributors (2007). "Regional Integration." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 20 April 2007 at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regional_integration
