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Alun John

John Kerry, the former United States secretary of state, said on Friday that the US would, in time, rejoin the Trans Pacific Partnership, and that he hoped it would become involved in the China-led Belt and Road Initiative, and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
“When the US withdrew from TPP, I believe that was a moment of leadership given away, for nothing, not even for a better deal,” said Kerry at the UBS Wealth Insights conference in Hong Kong, at a time of heightened tensions between President Donald Trump’s administration and China, with some observers predicting a trade war.
“I have urged the TPP 11 to go forward with the agreement, and I believe this moment will pass, the politics will change and the US will be able to come back to that agreement.”
Trans-Pacific Partnership countries agree to continue pact without Donald Trump’s US
Kerry was an important architect of the TPP, a trade deal involving 12 Pacific Rim countries from which Trump withdrew the US in January last year.
The other 11 are continuing with the plan.
“The fact that there are 11 other countries willing to put the finishing touches to the deal tells you something about the scale of the opportunity my country has chosen to miss by walking away,” Kerry said.
“Meanwhile China is filling the vacuum.”
When the US withdrew from TPP, I believe that was a moment of leadership given away, for nothing, not even for a better deal
John Kerry, former US secretary of state
Under former president Barack Obama, the US set out to engage more in the Asia-Pacific region, as part of the so called pivot to Asia strategy, of which the TPP was an important component.
As well as withdrawing from the TPP, Trump has tried to pursue a more isolationist approach to international affairs and a more protectionist stance when it comes to trade, particularly in trade with China.
In December, Trump labelled China a “strategic competitor”.
Daniel Russel, the former US assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, told the South China Morning Post’s China conference on Thursday that following this decision Trump might soon take executive action against China in the form of punitive tariffs, which would inevitably set in motion a cycle of retaliation from Beijing.
Sino-US relations and globalisation top the bill at China Conference in Hong Kong
In contrast to Trump’s approach, Kerry urged the US to be more involved in China-led trade initiatives in the region.
“We [the US and China] should be partners. I should like to see us be involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and I said that to President Xi [Jinping], but somehow we got off track,” he said.
Kerry did also add a note of caution about the geopolitical and economic implications of the scheme.
“Through the Belt and Road Initiative China is rapidly expanding its influence and enmeshing nearby countries in a net of roads, ports and waterways and also debts,” he said, citing the Sri Lankan port of Hambantota as an example.
Last week, Sri Lanka was forced to hand over the running of the port to conglomerate China Merchants Port Holdings as part of a deal in which Chinese loans to Sri Lanka were transferred into an equity stake in the port.
“Now China is extending the Belt and Road Initiative to the Pakistani port of Gwadar through the China Pakistan economic corridor.”
“Clearly the goal to dominate the Indian Pacific trade routes,” Kerry said.


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Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)

John Kerry: US will eventually join TPP and take part in China’s Belt and Road Initiative

John Kerry, former US secretary of state, told the UBS Wealth Insights conference in Hong Kong on Friday that the US and China should pursue more strategic partnerships. Photo: EPA

Ahead of Trump talks, Japan’s Shinzo Abe admits TPP trade deal hits difficulties

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks at an upper house special committee session. Photo: Kyodo

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attends an upper house special committee session on the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade pact in Tokyo on Nov. 14, 2016. Abe seeks early ratification of the pact even though strident TPP opponent Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

(From L) Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, TPP minister Nobuteru Ishihara, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and farm minister Yuji Yamamoto attend an upper house special committee session on the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade pact in Tokyo on Nov. 14, 2016. Abe seeks early ratification of the pact even though strident TPP opponent Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Another blow to Obama’s TPP after Vietnam says it won’t ratify trade pact and Australia looks to China

Workers on a garment production line on the outskirts of Hanoi. Vietnam was projected to see the biggest percentage boost to the economy of any country in the TPP – about 10 per cent by 2030, mostly thanks to textiles and apparel. File photo: AFP

(161115) -- SYDNEY, Nov. 15, 2016 (Xinhua) -- Australian Trade, Tourism and Investment Minister Steven Ciobo speaks at the banquet in Sydney, Australia, Nov. 15, 2016. The China Chamber of Commerce in Australia marked a decade of building business ties between the two countries with a banquet on Tuesday evening in Sydney that befitted the growing importance of bilateral trade and investment.  (Xinhua/Zhu Hongye) (lrz)

US President Barack Obama and Vietnamese General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong shake hands during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, July 7, 2015. President Barack Obama on Tuesday welcomed the leader of Vietnam's Communist Party to the White House for a rare Oval Office meeting, two decades after the one-time enemies normalized relations. The talks with Trong -- the first general secretary of the Vietnamese Communist Party to visit the United States and the White House -- come as Washington looks to build deeper trade, military and political ties with Hanoi. AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEB

epa05603205 Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc speaks to media during a press conference after the 8th Cambodia-Laos-Myanmar-Vietnam Summit (CLMV-8) and the 7th Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy Summit (ACMECS-7) in Hanoi, Vietnam, 26 October 2016. EPA/LUONG THAI LINH/POOL

epa05142233 A handout photo provided by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) shows New Zealand Prime Minister John Key clapping during the signing of the Trans Pacific Partnership trade agreement in Auckland, New Zealand, 04 February 2016. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) involves a dozen countries bordering the Pacific Ocean. It is being touted as the most significant trade deal in a generation. The signatories comprise Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam. Member states have a combined population of 800 million. The members account for 40 per cent the world economy. EPA/PETER MEECHAM / HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

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In the world of trade diplomacy, the acronym is king

Trade ministers and delegates from the remaining members of the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) attend the TPP ministerial meeting on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders summit Thursday, Nov. 9, 2017 in Danang, Vietnam. (AP Photo/Na Son Nguyen, Pool)

Visitors wait to go through a security check at the media centre for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) leaders summit in Danang, Vietnam. Photo: AP

China to curb ‘irrational’ overseas investment by domestic firms in ‘Belt and Road’ projects

Women pose with a model train during the ground breaking ceremony for the East Coast Rail Link project in Malaysia, on August 9. The scheme is one of many being developed under China’s “Belt and Road Initiative”. Photo: Xinhua

China seeks to strengthen ties with Malaysia as work starts on key belt and road rail link

Malaysia is a vital area in China’s plans to develop Southeast Asia’s infrastructure. Photo: AFP

graphic for online

epa05574296 epa05167400 A worker inspects a container placed on a trailer at the Aomi International Container Terminal in Tokyo, Japan, 18 February 2016. According to data released by the government, Japan's exports dropped 12.9 percent from a year earlier to 5.35 trillion yen (46.9 billion USD) in January, the lowest in nearly two years despite a weaker yen. Japan's shipments to China, the country's largest trading partner, plunged 17.5 percent for the six straight month of decline amid a slowdown in the world's second-largest economy. EPA/FRANCK ROBICHON EPA/FRANCK ROBICHON

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Former US Secretary of State John Kerry says the US has missed a huge opportunity by walking away from the Trans Pacific Partnership


US-China relations

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