Bush slips up on Apec name

US President George W Bush has mistaken the name of the conference he's travelled halfway around the world to attend, in front of a summit of business leaders in Sydney.

Mr Bush, in Australia to attend the Apec (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) summit of world leaders, took to the stage at the Sydney Opera House this morning and thanked Prime Minister John Howard for his introduction and for being such a "kind host" for the Opec (Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries) summit.

"I mean Apec summit," he said.

"I've been invited to the Opec summit next year.

"The Apec summit."

The faux pas brought laughter from his audience inside the auditorium.

White House aides later said Bush was joking and would not, in fact, attend an Opec summit.

Mr Bush also stumbled over his pronunciation of Jemaah Islamiah, the regional terror network.

And in another miscue, he botched the host country's name, referring to Mr Howard's visit to Iraq in 2006 as a thank-you to "the Austrian troops there."

- NZPA