Japan is entering a new stage in its pursuit of free-trade agreements as it begins bilateral and multilateral FTA negotiations involving its three major trade partners — the United States, the European Union and China.
Just about a week before declaring the launch of free-trade talks with the European Union on Monday, Japan said it decided to join negotiations on the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership pact that seeks to achieve a high degree of trade liberalization.
Work to forge a deal between Japan, China and South Korea also started Tuesday, and the first round of talks to create another huge free-trade zone called the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which will bring together 16 Asia-Pacific countries, including Japan, China and India, is scheduled for later this year.