PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA is on a nine-day trip that will take him to South Korea and China, but wherever he goes the issue of Afghanistan will haunt him and will never be far away, especially after leaked diplomatic memos exposed divisions in his administration.

The trip also reflects the challenges of a changing world. One of the high points of this visit is the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). In the past these visits were roundly dismissed.

This year, there was more hope than usual that this meeting would produce concrete results. The positive role played by Asian nations in helping recovery from the global economic crisis created optimism about the potential of the APEC meeting, which will be hosted by Japan in 2010 and the United States in 2011.

The fact that Singapore was hosting this year's meeting added to expectations. As a small country, it has excelled at driving very large institutions, producing results out of sheer determination.

Alas, tradition proved hard to overcome. Unfortunately, this year's meeting was no more notable than its predecessors, yielding a final declaration that recapitulates the usual rhetoric - "a commitment to free trade, a rejection of protectionism, recognition of the need for a long-term growth strategy that respects the diversity of APEC's members".

Echoing recent G20 statements, the group pledged to continue economic stimulus packages until there is a sustainable recovery. And, like the G20, the leaders acknowledged that "growth as usual" is no longer an answer. They said a "fresh growth paradigm and model of economic integration" were needed.

Some in the Asia region said their courage failed them. On the burning issue of climate change, the leaders conceded the inevitable and called for "an ambitious outcome in Copenhagen", while simultaneously dropping a proposal that embraced sharp cuts in greenhouse-gas emissions to half their 1990 levels by 2050.

The trip to China, however, now seen as an economic powerhouse, is important in that it elevates its relationship with the United States. The outstanding issues are international security, North Korea's return to the six-party talks and climate change; but the symbolism is not lost.

However, the greater tension between them is the economic relationship. Though China underwrites the United States' economy, it accuses the United States of protectionist policies. The United States blames China for protecting its currency to make its exports cheaper.

The leaders were equally timid on trade issues. There was the rejection of "all forms of protectionism" and reaffirmation of the "commitment to keep markets open and refrain from raising new barriers to investment or to trade".

This refrain is now like a recurring decimal: it appears after every summit. The major benefit is that bilateral meetings occur on the sidelines and this process cannot be quantified, but it apparently pays dividends in the long run.