China trade talks: Clark grabs chance to be first

By FRAN O'SULLIVAN

Prime Minister Helen Clark will this week get her wish for New Zealand to be the first Western developed nation to begin free-trade talks with China.

Negotiations will be launched by Clark and Chinese President Hu Jintao at a meeting in Santiago late on Friday - just before the leaders' summit of Apec (the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation group).

The results of a feasibility study will also be released.

"China's going to be a major economic power, it's going to play a greater part in our future," said Clark.

"We've got the opportunity here to get on the front foot and be the first to be able to pick up the opportunities.

"Our biggest challenge is going to be working with the business community here on awakening people to the opportunities.

"We've got to get out and take them. The Government can open doors and even-out the rules, but in the end people have got to walk through the doors."

New Zealand's free-trade deal with Thailand - originally set to be unveiled at Apec - may not be made public until later this month.

The deal has been under negotiation since the last Apec meeting in Bangkok.

But Thai President Thaksin has signalled he may not get to Apec this year because of civil unrest in South Thailand.

In Santiago, the Apec leaders will debate a business-generated proposal for a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific.

But that is expected to take second place to a big push to try to complete the Doha Round negotiations in time for a World Trade Organisation ministerial meeting in Hong Kong late next year.

Clark said one of the key challenges would also be to "get some rules" into the plethora of bilateral and regional deals that criss-cross the Pacific.

"There are a lot of substandard ones and that is something that is supposed to be talked about reasonably frankly.

"There will always be the tension between the security agenda and how big the economic agenda is - but I've always taken the view the two have got to be taken in tandem."

Key meetings on Clark's Apec agenda include:

* A "pullaside" with US President George W. Bush at which she will "talk about what we are doing in common" - including Afghanistan. "Now that the election is over we'll be looking to encourage our constituency in Washington to be pushing for the closer trade relationship."

* A meeting with Australian Prime Minister John Howard at which the two will talk tactics for their summit with Asean leaders in Vientiane this month. At that summit, talks will be launched for a free-trade deal between Asean and the CER countries after years of opposition by Malaysia in particular.

* An expected meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin: "We've been doing some thinking about how to get on Russia's horizon - it's fair to say we wouldn't be on theirs."

Clark's schedule also includes meetings with new Indonesian President Dr Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

* Fran O'Sullivan is attending the Apec business summit and will report from Santiago on the China negotiations.