Bandar Seri Begawan - Close to 200 official Brunei delegates visiting the Russian Federation this year was an impressive and encouraging record, the Charge d'Affaires of Russia to Brunei Darussalam, Mr Alexey Balashov, told the media yesterday.

The two countries continue to explore avenues for greater relations, and this was clearly showed during the APEC meeting, he said.

Speaking on the outcome of the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting convened on the Russky Island in the City of Vladivostok, Mr Alexey Balashov expressed the RussianS' appreciation on the high-level of Brunei participation in all the arrangements under the Russia's Chairmanship in APEC.

Potential areas of greater cooperation included areas of energy and trade.

The Brunei delegations to Russia attended the First Senior Officials Meeting (January-February 10, Moscow), Seminar "Moderniation of the Treasury Systems in APEC Economies" (March 25-27, Kazan), Meeting Ministers Responsible for Trade (June 4-5, Kazan), Energy Ministerial Meeting (June 24-25, St Petersburg), Meeting of Ministers Responsible for Mining (June 27-28, St Petersburg), Women and Economy Forum (June 28- 30, St Petersburg, Meeting of Ministers Responsible for Mining (June 27-28, St Petersburg), Meeting for Ministers Responsible for Environment (July 16-18, Khabarovsk), Tourism Ministerial Meeting (July 23-24, Khabarovsk), Small and Medium Enterprises Meeting (August 3, St Petersburg), Special Transportation Meeting (August 3, St Petersburg), Telecommunications and Information Ministerial Meeting (August, 7-8, St Petersburg), APEC Finance Ministers' Meeting (August 30, Moscow), APEC Business Advisory Council Meeting (September 4-6, Vladivostok), and APEC Ministerial Meeting (September 5-6, Vladivostok).

The APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting approved a declaration which expressed their commitment to continue joint work in the interest of sustainable development and prosperity of Asia and Pacific region.

This strategic target can be achieved through activation of APEC collaboration within the framework of priorities put forward by Russia's Chairmanship in 2012.

These priority spheres of interaction include: trade and investment liberalisation and regional economic integration, strengthening food security, establishing reliable supply chains, intensive cooperation to foster innovative growth.

Mr Alexey Balashov reiterated that further to these priorities, more than 50 Russian initiatives and projects have been approved by our APEC partners.

In the context of trade and investment liberalisation, there was a joint understanding on the necessity to counter trade protectionism including the one disguised as environmental protection, facilitate investment into high-tech areas of economic activity, establish under APEC mechanism of investment arbitration, upgrade the statistics in services trade.

"We are pleased to note that under Russian Chairmanship, APEC managed to realise the task of preparing the list of ecological products the custom duties on which will be reduced to five per cent and less by 2015", said Mr Alexey Balashov.

As far as the reliable supply chains are concerned, the focus was made on smart logistic chains involving satellite and computer program, inter alia using the Russian technology of global positioning GLONASS and diversification of the supply routes through transit of Russia.

In the food security area, the following aims were put forward: facilitating investment and new technologies in agriculture, development of food markets and facilitating their stability, access to better food for vulnerable population, counteracting illegal fishing.

In the sphere of innovations, the necessity of intensifying interaction between state, expert and business levels was emphasised. The leaders also agreed to actively discuss the establishment of joint educational space in the region of APEC.

As mentioned by Russia's President Vladimir Putin, the results of APEC work under our country's chairmanship lay the groundwork for enhancing cooperation in the years to come.

On January 1, 2013 the chairmanship in APEC will be handed over from Russia to Indonesia.