U.S.
Engagement in the Asia Pacific: The Decision to Join the Trans-Pacific Strategic
Economic Partnership
October 30, 2008
WIIT, in partnership with the East-West Center, jointly hosted a lunch event on U.S. Engagement in the Asia-Pacific: The Decision to Join the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership on October 30, 2008. The event's featured speaker was Barbara Weisel, AUSTR for the Office of Southeast Asia and Pacific Affairs, who discussed the agreement and current developments off-the-record. Jeffrey Schott, the Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, provided insightful commentary on the subject. Approximately 60 participants attended the event, making it a great success!
The Trans-Pacific region is of growing economic importance to the United States. It provides an opportunity for the United States to deepen its engagement in the region. The Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement (TPP) was signed by Chile, Singapore, New Zealand, and Brunei in June 2005 and entered into force on November 2006. The TPP countries see this agreement as a path toward a broader Asia-Pacific regional agreement and have expressed strong interest in bringing the United States in as well as other countries.
In February 2008, USTR
Susan Schwab announced that the United States was joining negotiations on
investment and financial services chapters of the TPP. On September 22nd,
USTR Schwab announced that the Bush Administration will be seeking a comprehensive
FTA with the TPP countries. The next round of negotiations will be held in
Singapore in March. Australia and Peru have expressed interest in joining
the TPP negotiations, while Vietnam and Japan are exploring this possibility.
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