AlHijjah 2, 1434, Oct 7, 2013, SPA -- Heads of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation met Monday in the Indonesian resort of Bali but absent was U.S. President Barack Obama, UPI reported. Obama canceled his planned Asia trip due to the U.S. government shutdown, giving the charge of leading the U.S. delegation to Secretary of State John Kerry to both the Bali meeting and later in the week the U.S.-Association of Southeast Asian Nations session in Brunei. The ultimate aim of the TPP talks to create a free trade pact for Asia-Pacific nations. Currently the nations involved in the TPP effort are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam.
