REGIONAL ARCHITECTURE: THE TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP --------------------------------------------- --------
¶11. (SBU) Asked about the President's announcement November 14 in Tokyo that the United States would engage in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement, U/S Hormats told DG Okada the United States is committed to Asia and to meaningful dialogue on new regional architecture. Before commencing actual talks with TPP partners, however, the United States must consider basic questions about what the content of any negotiation will be and which countries would be first-order candidates to engage. Any agreement will need to be of the highest standard, in particular in areas such as labor, the environment, and intellectual property rights, he said. In the interim, we can continue to achieve progress on ease of doing business, reduction of barriers on trade in green technology, and improvement of the investment climate, U/S Hormats explained. Both DG Okada and DG Suzuki expressed Japan's interest in the TPP, but conceded Japan would be unable to enter into negotiations at this time due to domestic sensitivities related to agriculture.
