HANOI, November 17 (RIA Novosti) - About 1,200 businessmen, representing leading companies from the Asia-Pacific region, will meet in the Vietnamese capital Friday during a business forum ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), to be held in Hanoi November 18-19.
Russia's delegation to the forum comprises the heads of leading energy companies and banks, including energy giant Gazprom, Vneshtorgbank and Sberbank.
Russian President Vladimir Putin expects to sign a bilateral agreement on Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization with the U.S. at his meeting with President George W. Bush.
Russia's eventual entry to the global trade body would encourage the country's trade with APEC economies, which have also been considering merging numerous bilateral free-trade agreements in the region into a single treaty.