Where Are We Heading For
Staff Reporter, Nov 10, 2014
Leaders from the 21 APEC member-economies have all arrived in Beijing, China for the 22nd APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting November 10 to 11, and will consider a China-sponsored road map for FTAAP or Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific. Under the theme "Shaping the Future Through Asia-Pacific Partnership," ministers from the member countries agreed on Nov 8 to officially start work on creating a regional free trade area at the APEC Ministerial Meeting, co-chaired by China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng.
On Nov 9, however, US Trade Representative Michael Froman stressed that the China-backed vision for Asia-Pacific free trade area is only "a long-term aspiration for the region that's to be achieved through other ongoing negotiations." He said: "TPP of course is the major focus of our economic pillar of the rebalance to this region," referring to its 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), which excludes China, the world's second largest economy.
The 21 APEC member countries account for 57 percent of the global GDP and 46 percent of its trade. As the host of this year's APEC summit, China has been pushing to launch a feasibility study on FTAAP which typically suggests the launch of full negotiations within a year or two. FTAAP has been on APEC's agenda since 2010. Washington was once an FTAAP booster. But the White House now wants the focus to stay on TPP, and has been fighting hard in preparatory APEC meetings to stop the Chinese from including anything in the final communique that might suggest negotiations on an FTAAP are imminent.
Upon his arrival in Beijing, one of President Obama's first meetings was at the US Embassy Beijing with the leaders of 11 other nations negotiating the TPP trade pact. "It's up to all of us to see if we can finalize a deal that's both ambitious and comprehensive," Mr. Obama said. He urged the other leaders "to break some of the remaining logjams."
The TPP discussions, however, have run into snags amid resistance by some prospective members, notably Japan, to opening domestic markets too widely. On Saturday Nov 8, Japan's Economy Minister Akira Amari said it would be difficult to reach an agreement by the end of the year for TPP, although he saw progress in the negotiations.
If no credible progress can be made on TPP at the APEC meeting in Beijing, China will likely announce a "Beijing Road Map" for a free trade agreement (FTA) of the Pacific Rim, building on APEC rather than the TPP.
President Bill Clinton, who initiated the first APEC Leader's Meeting 25 years ago, voiced his support for APEC's continued work to "build a more inclusive, more secure, more sustainable world for generations to come."
"We were entering a new era of globalization and the Asia-Pacific region was well on its way to becoming the most important source of global growth and dynamism," Mr. Clinton said ahead of the 2014 APEC Summit. "In order to seize the opportunity we had to find ways to work together to advance our shared interests and overcome some common challenges," he added.
