U.S., other APEC delegates walk out on Russian speaker

By GRANT PECK
Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — Delegates from the United States and four other nations have staged a walkout when a representative from Russia began his opening remarks at a meeting of trade ministers of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation group in the Thai capital. Officials from the U.S, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Canada said they acted to protest Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Western nations have imposed tough diplomatic and economic sanctions on Moscow but many of APEC members especially in Southeast Asia and Latin America have distanced themselves from such moves. The war in Ukraine has raised major trade issues because it has disrupted supply chains, especially in the food sector. The delegates returned after Russia’s Minister for Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov delivered his remarks.