Leaders from the Asia Pacific region have pledged to agree next month on the outlines of a global free trade deal.
The 21 leaders at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Peru also promised not to introduce new protectionist measures in response to a global economic downturn. US President George W. Bush made an impassioned defence of free trade on what is expected to be his final trip abroad in office. His fellow APEC leaders agreed to refrain from raising trade barriers for the next 12 months. Meanwhile on the sidelines of the Lima summit, Japan and Russia have agreed to take concrete steps toward resolving their territorial dispute over several Pacific islands north of Japan.
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