I am proud to announce that after two days of talks with my fellow economic leaders we have agreed to three important statements. These statements not only reaffirm APEC's position as the premier regional grouping but have highlighted the shared commitment of all 21 APEC economies to meet the challenges of the future.
The Sydney Declaration I announced yesterday is an historic commitment by all Leaders to the challenge posed by climate change. The agreement by APEC economies on the need for an overall global goal for emissions reductions is a very significant step towards a truly comprehensive climate change framework. It is also the first time that major economies such as China, the United States and the Russian Federation have agreed to specific APEC wide aspirational goals: first, a decrease in energy intensity of 25 per cent by 2030; second, an increase in forest cover of 20 million hectares by 2020. These are significant in terms of the greenhouse gas reductions they entail.
APEC leaders also reaffirmed their commitment to the multilateral trading system and moving to the final phase of the World Trade Organisation Doha Round negotiations. We called on our partners to show similar leadership to bring these negotiations to a successful conclusion.
The Leaders Declaration agreed today moved forward APEC's core commitment to trade and investment liberalisation, trade facilitation, structural and economic reform and human security. We endorsed a plan to strengthen economic integration and to examine a Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific. I am also pleased to announce that Australia will host a meeting of APEC economic ministers in 2008 to further strengthen the commitment to structural reform and remove behind the border impediments to trade.
We advanced APEC's important commitment to human security including through guidelines on maintaining our economies in times of pandemics and recovering our trade flows after a terrorist attack. Leaders also agreed to reform APEC by the creation of a new policy support unit and through increased financial commitments by economies.
Leaders accepted offers by the United States to host APEC in 2011 and the Russian Federation in 2012. We also agreed to extend the membership moratorium to 2010.
In the past week I have been honoured to host bilateral guest-of-government visits with the President of China, His Excellency Hu Jintao, the President of the United States of America, the Honourable George W. Bush, and the President of the Russian Federation, His Excellency Mr Vladimir Putin.
These visits have seen a number of significant government-to-government and commercial agreements signed including an agreement between Woodside Petroleum and PetroChina for the supply of $45 billion in Liquefied Natural Gas. On Wednesday, Australia and the United States signed a treaty on defence trade cooperation and, on Friday, an historic agreement on nuclear cooperation between Australia and the Russian Federation was signed. These various agreements will bring major benefits to Australia into the future.
I look forward to hosting the Prime Minister of Canada, the Right Honourable Stephen Harper, in Canberra on Tuesday 11 September and very much look forward to his address to both Houses of Parliament.
I am proud of the way in which the Australian people, particularly the people of Sydney in the past week, have embraced APEC and the hospitality they have extended throughout 2007 to our many APEC visitors.