Senior officials from 21 countries are meeting in Hawaii this week for the annual summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC). Security is in force in Honolulu, as 10,000 people gather for the summit, including national leaders, government ministers, business executives and reporters. This year the United States hopes to expand trade and coordinate regulations in the Pacific region and announce a framework for the so-called Trans-Pacific Partnership, a Pacific free trade zone. It would be built on an existing trade agreement involving Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore. American negotiators are spearheading the effort to expand the partnership to include the United States, Australia, Malaysia, Peru and Vietnam. VOV/VOA … [Read more...] about Asia Pacific leaders to tackle free trade, tariffs
Asia pacific
Asia-Pacific broadcasters meet in Macao
The 36th Annual Gathering and the 9th General Assembly of the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) opened in Macao (China) on July 26, bringing together more than 70 radio and TV broadcasters from 22 countries in the region. In his report, an AIBD representative reported that since 2009 the AIBD has collaborated with international organisations and regional broadcasters to organise 77 training courses and 8 international workshops, drawing the participation of 1,700 journalists and their managers. Vietnam has been acknowledged regionally as one of the member countries that have run many such courses and workshops thanks to the active engagement of Radio the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) and Vietnam Television (VTV). Delegates focused their discussions on opportunities and challenges for the media, the audience’s needs in the context of multimedia development, the audience’s role in programming, as well as accuracy and credibility of the media. … [Read more...] about Asia-Pacific broadcasters meet in Macao
Asia-Pacific ministers extend freeze on trade barriers
Asia-Pacific ministers on Thursday agreed to extend a freeze on trade barriers and pledged to work toward creating a vast free trade area in the world's fastest growing region. But a Group of 20 (G20) summit of major economies in neighbouring South Korea -- beset by deep divisions over currencies, monetary policy and global trade imbalances -- is towering over the meeting of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Yokohama, south of Tokyo. Nine of APEC's members also belong to the G20, including the world's biggest economies -- China, Japan and the United States. APEC leaders meet in Yokohama at the weekend, immediately after the Seoul G20 summit. The APEC ministers agreed to extend a freeze on any fresh protectionist measures, which they first agreed at the height of the financial crisis in 2008, for another three years. They also urged a conclusion to the moribund Doha round of free trade talks by the end of next year. "While (the) world … [Read more...] about Asia-Pacific ministers extend freeze on trade barriers
Five Vietnamese artists to compete at Asia-Pacific prize
The artworks of five Vietnamese artists have been nominated for the second triennial Asia Pacific Breweries Foundation Signature Art Prize 2011, in Singapore. The five artists include Ly Hoang Ly, Bui Cong Khanh, Nguyen Minh Phuong, Le Thua Tien and Pham Huy Thong. They submit five artworks, consisting installation artworks “Cloud” (Ly Hoang Ly) and “432,000 or 675,098 or 178,985 or 765,455.099 or…” (Le Thua Tien), “Brotherhood” (Pham Huy Thong), “The past moved” (Bui Cong Khanh) and photo “Passport of the planet” (Nguyen Minh Phuong). These artworks are nominated by Dr. Boi Tran Huynh – Beattie, who has organized many exhibitions and projects related to the community of overseas Vietnamese. Launched by the Asia Pacific Breweries Foundation, in collaboration with the Singapore Art Museum, the prize is open to all forms of art and artists in the Asia Pacific region. It seeks the most outstanding contemporary … [Read more...] about Five Vietnamese artists to compete at Asia-Pacific prize
Vietnamese artist gets into Asia Pacific Art Prize 2011 finale
Artist Bui Cong Khanh has entered the final round of the Asia Pacific Breweries Foundation Signature Art Prize 2011, with 14 artists from 13 countries. Five Vietnamese artists to compete at Asia-Pacific prize Bui Cong Khanh's artwork. The Singapore Art Museum and APB Foundation have named 15 artists for the finale of the APB Foundation Signature Art Prize 2011, including Vietnam’s Bui Cong Khanh, 39. Khanh enters the finale with the multimedia artwork “The Past Moved”. The work describes rapid urbanization in HCM City. “The Past Moved is a multimedia artwork in which time, space and history are combined. The work depicts the space and time which is moving to the past. It implies different explanations of art and history,” said Dr. Huynh Boi Tran - Beattie, who nominated the work. Besides Bui Cong Khanh, 14 artists who enter the final round come from 13 countries and territories in the Asia Pacific region, including: Cambodia, China, India, South … [Read more...] about Vietnamese artist gets into Asia Pacific Art Prize 2011 finale