Mongolian Prime Minister Visits APEC Secretariat

A senior government delegation from Mongolia has visited the APEC Secretariat as part of efforts to intensify Mongolia's participation in APEC working groups and to enquire about procedures and criteria for eventual accession to APEC.

Headed by the Mongolian Prime Minister HE Mr.Tsahiagiin Elbegdorj the delegation toured the APEC Secretariat facilities before taking part in a briefing session to exchange opinions on APEC participation issues.

APEC Secretariat Executive Director, Ambassador Choi Seok Young welcomed the Prime Minister and his delegation, presented a general overview on APEC and explained APEC's membership criteria, including the current membership moratorium, which was agreed by APEC Leaders in 1997. Ambassador Choi also advised that no official discussions had taken place to date on new membership.

The delegation included Mongolia's Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Battur Avirmed, Vice Minister for Construction & Urban Development, Mr Dashdorj Tsedev, the Vice Minister for Finance, Mr Ganzorig Chimeddorj, and other senior officials.

The APEC process currently has 21 Member Economies stretching from Russia in the west, through North and South-East Asia, to Australia and North and South America. All the existing Member Economies are located along the Pacific Rim. They account for around half of the world's trade, in excess of 60% of world GDP and are home to more than 2.6 billion people.