Leaked diplomatic cables on WikiLeaks showed that the governments of South Korean and the United States have been working in tandem to push ahead the free trade agreement despite opposition from US business circles.
Turkey and Lebanon are expected to sign several deals this week, including a partnership establishing a free-trade zone and a joint political declaration aiming toward a new high-level strategic cooperation counc
Some marched through the streets protesting against the free-trade talks hosted by the Asia-Pacific leaders, saying it will threaten Japan’s agricultural sector.
Hundreds of people staged a rally Saturday in central Yokohama to voice their opposition to Japan and other Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum members taking steps to accelerate "unprincipled" trade liberalization, saying the measures would destroy people’s livelihoods and devastate farmers.
Les pays de l’Asie-Pacifique, dont les Etats-Unis et la Chine, ont promis dimanche des mesures concrètes pour réaliser leur rêve de libre-échange dans cette vaste région représentant la moitié du PIB mondial.
Asia-Pacific leaders said they will take “concrete steps” toward creating a “comprehensive” regional free-trade agreement, without setting a target for achieving that goal.
Senior regional officials concluded their meeting Monday at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Yokohama with a decision to pursue a regionwide free-trade zone.
Pacific Rim economies are debating whether to change the informal Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum so that it can negotiate the creation of a Pacific-wide free trade zone.
"Japan is talking about a free-trade agreement for the Asia-Pacific region. But for Asian laborers, realization of this goal will mean increased unemployment or the shedding of full-time employees in favor of contract workers and the lowering of wages and salaries," union representatives say
ASEAN Briefing is a platform dedicated to the various and increasing number of trade treaties and agreements throughout the ASEAN region, produced by tax and legal professionals Dezan Shira & Associates.
May 2004 article by Focus on the Global South associate Raghav Narsalay on the politics of regional trade negotiations in South Asia. A PDF version with table and graph is available for download here