Undeniable: TPP Is Foundation for FTAAP

Leaders of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the text of the agreement itself admit that the TPP is the foundation for the development of the Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP).

 

The TPP, or Trans-Pacific Partnership, is a proposed so-called “free trade” agreement negotiated among 12 Pacific Rim nations (Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States, and Vietnam) representing 40 percent of world GDP. On October 5, 2015, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman announced that the United States and the 11 other participating Pacific Rim nations had reached a final agreement on the TPP.

 

The FTAAP, or Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific, is another proposed regional “free trade” agreement that would include all 21 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries (Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Communist China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam).

 

APEC is a self-described “economic forum” created in 1989 to promote “free and open trade” and “accelerating regional economic integration” in the Asia-Pacific region.

 

As The New American recently reported about the APEC CEO Summit, hosted in Manila, Philippines (November 16-18), APEC leaders reaffirmed their commitment to the proposed FTAAP through the implementation of regional “trade” schemes, specifically naming the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

 

“We reiterate our commitment to achieve the Bogor Goals of free and open trade and investment by 2020 and to the eventual realization of the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP),” the APEC “2015 Leaders’ Declaration” said. Down toward the end of the declaration, it further stated:

 

We reiterate our belief that the FTAAP should be pursued as a comprehensive free trade agreement by building on ongoing regional undertakings…. In this connection, we note the recent development on the free trade agreements in the region and the progress of the possible Pathways to the FTAAP, including the finalization of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations.

 

The Leaders’ Declaration is a joint declaration made by and agreed to by the leaders (presidents and prime ministers) of all 21 APEC member states. In addition to the APEC “2015 Leaders’ Declaration,” various TPP leaders and countries have also admitted that their goal is to facilitate the creation of the FTAAP.

 

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