More on the US and the TPP

Yashiro Youichi, professor and prolific writer on agricultural issues in Japan weighs in on the TPP and the US interest in the initiative.

In response to the question, "What does the TPP mean to the US? he has this to say":

The original configuration of the TPP only involved about four countries and about 26 million people. So it seems that the logic was "we are just small nations; let's put tariffs to zero so we can survive."

The problem is that the US has come butting in. Why?

The answer can be found in a speech by President Obama in November of 2009. A new focus of the Obama administration was going to be exports, he explained. And a key new market was going to be Asia. So let's make an American-style Pacific free-trade sphere. But what he had in mind was not just lowering tariffs, but getting rid of trade barriers all together.

In the same speech, Obama asserted that he was America's first Pacific president, and he the US was going to rejoin other Pacific nations.

The Hatoyama administration misunderstood this message. Or, at least they did not thoroughly understand it.

The Asia region has been virgin soil as far as free trade has gone, but in 2005 China started promoting an ASEAN + 3 (Japan, China, Korea) with a common East Asian body. With Hatoyama's new government, Hatoyama firmyl shook hands with Hu Jintao and one again appealed for a common East Asian trade body.

The US was furious about this. Was this "Asia body without the US" not just a Chinese initiative? Kissinger, Armitage and other people familiar with Japan led the charge.

The US started doing its best to get Japan back into its own camp.

Yashiro Youichi spells it out: "Let's think about the real content of the TPP"

http://www.jacom.or.jp/tokusyu/2011/tokusyu110316-12864.php

More On Resentments

My last post was about the hidden resentments behind the angry response to the TPP negotiations in Japan. It is going to be interesting to see how this issue plays out. Look at the US position on beef vis a vis the TPP.

http://theindependent.com/articles/2011/03/09/news/local/doc4d76e5a9c85e1108222941.txt

U.S. Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., teamed up with other senators to push the Obama administration to get Japan to fully open its markets to U.S. beef now with Japan’s interest in joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

“Japan is an important trading partner to the U.S. and I would strongly support a robust trade agreement that includes both countries, but it has no leg to stand on without fixing the beef issue first,” said Johanns.

He said the U.S. beef industry has been unfairly targeted and restricted for far too long. “Japan’s restrictions are not based in science and irrationally punish one of our most competitive industries,” he said.

Johanns said U.S. farmers and ranchers have always produced the “highest quality beef and our internationally renowned food safety system has protected consumers for decades.”

“It’s time for Japan to recognize these efforts and remove their unjustifiable barriers,” he said.

And Kyodo News picked this up:

http://www.istockanalyst.com/business/news/4957033/u-s-frets-slow-progress-in-market-access-for-beef-in-japan

WASHINGTON, Mar. 9, 2011 (Kyodo News International) -- U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk expressed displeasure Wednesday in congressional testimony over slow progress in gaining market access for beef products in Asian countries such as Japan.

''We are exceptionally frustrated with the slow pace'' at which Asian countries are complying with international health standards and lifting restrictions imposed on U.S. beef products due to fears over mad cow disease, Kirk said.

Stressing that American beef has been scientifically proven to be safe and meets international standards, Kirk told the Senate Finance Committee, ''Our goal in every case, whether it's (South) Korea, whether it's China, whether it's Taiwan, whether it is Japan, is to have them comply with those international standards.''

''We're negotiating with them trying to gain their compliance. We will continue to do that,'' the top U.S. trade diplomat said.

He made the remarks in response to a question from Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, who voiced concern that Japan's possible participation in a trans-Pacific free trade accord could have a negative impact on U.S. farmers if the beef issue is not resolved.

Great article from Akahata, the Red Flag, mouthpiece of Japan's communist party:

Headline: Lifting the Ban on Dangerous US Beef?