The summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum has come to a close in Santiago, Chile, with an agreement to continue working towards a free-trade area of the Pacific rim.

Top leaders from 21 member economies of the Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum ended their meeting Sunday (Nov. 21) with a declaration on sustainable growth, trade liberalization, human security and good governance.

Under the declaration titled "One Community, Our Future," also the main theme of this year's APEC meetings, the leaders reaffirmed their commitment to advancing development through trade and investment liberalization, enhancing human security to underpinning growth, promoting good governance and a knowledge-based society.

"The meeting is a big success not only for Chile, but also for all APEC members," Chilean President Ricardo Lagos, whose country is the first South American nation to host APEC events, told a press conference.

Reviewing a wide variety of consensuses reached at the meeting, Lagos highlighted the APEC leaders' strong support for the WTO Doha Round negotiations and their determination to advance the prosperity and sustainable growth of the region.

In the declaration, the leaders pledged to work with a renewed sense of urgency to achieve a balanced overall outcome that will meet the high levels of ambition set for those negotiations.

The APEC leaders agreed to launch an initiative for expanded trade in APEC to complement the achievement of free and open trade in the region.

An overarching dimension of the initiative is the capacity building so that the economies can implement and benefit from their work on trade liberalization and facilitation.

At the two-day annual meeting, which has brought unprecedented tight security in the Chilean capital, the leaders approved a series of counterterrorism measures aimed at advancing the prosperity and sustainable growth of the economies and the complementary mission of ensuring the security of the people.

They also pledged renewed efforts to fight corruption and promote structural reform.

The meeting is the last event of the week-long APEC meetings, which also included the Senior Officials Meeting and the Ministerial Meeting, and the culmination of the whole APEC Chile 2004.

Numerous bilateral meetings between the world's key leaders were also planned on the sidelines of the meeting.

The leaders kicked off Sunday's session by posing for an official photograph session in Chile's traditional garments of "Chamantos," a kind of decorative and reversible poncho woven in silk thread and wool.

Chilean President Lagos, chairman of this year's APEC leaders' meeting, welcomed the leaders from 21 APEC members at the presidential palace La Moneda, where they showed up for a photograph session.

As a tradition at the annual summit, leaders are required to pose for a photo-opportunity in garments reflective of the host's unique culture. At the previous meetings, leaders donned Indonesia's traditional batik, Philippine barong Tagalog and traditional Chinese embroidered silk jacket.

APEC, as the premier forum for facilitating economic growth, cooperation, trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region, was set up in 1989 to further enhance economic growth and prosperity for the region and to strengthen the Asia-Pacific community.

It now groups Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Chinese Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, the Philippines, the United States and Vietnam.

Editor: Olivia