Trans-Pacific Partnership Comes Around

Trans-Pacific Partnership is a free trade agreement which includes a chapter on foreign investment promotion and protection. The Partnership was signed on 4 February 2016 by twelve countries, namely   Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States. The negotiations of the Partnership lasted seven years. Unfortunately, on 23 January 2017 Donald Trump signed an executive order formally withdrawing the U.S. from the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

After the withdrawal of the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Donald Trump advocates for the conclusion of separate bilateral free trade agreements, which would also include chapters on foreign investment protection. It seems that it is a general trend present currently in the United States. Such a conclusion is also reached from two additional facts. First, since his presidential campaign, Donald Trump has been attacking multilateral free trade agreements, in particular the North American Free Trade Agreement which according to him requires major adjustments. Second, when Donald Trump became the U.S. President, the information regarding the North American Free Trade Agreement, the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Protection Agreement has disappeared from the White House website. 

In such a situation, the question arises whether the withdrawal of the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership strengthens the position of China in the region and globally. Until recently, the participation of the United States in the Partnership prevented China from taking part in the negotiations. However, since the United States lost its interest in  the Trans-Pacific Partnership, among others, the Australian government declared its openness for the participation of China and Indonesia in the Partnership.