China has officially applied to join the 11-member Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a regional trade pact initiated by the U.S. under former President Barack Obama, from which the U.S. withdrew under President Donald Trump. Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao filed a written request for CPTPP accession with New Zealand's Minister for Trade and Export Growth Damien O'Connor, acting as CPTPP Depositary, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said in a statement. The two ministers held a teleconference discussing relevant follow-up work after China's official application. The CPTPP, which became effective in December 2018, replaced the TPP after the U.S. withdrew in 2017. China's potential membership would enhance trade cooperation with U.S. allies, including Canada, Japan and Australia.
The CPTPP covers more areas than the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which China has already joined. The CPTPP also includes chapters on labor rights and environmental protection. While the RCEP, which is still in the process of being ratified, is an Asia-centric pact, the CPTPP is geographically more far-reaching, with Canada and Peru as members. China is hoping for the CPTPP to put global trade and economic cooperation back on track, underscoring the need for multilateralism, thereby reviving both the Chinese economy and the global economy in the post-Covid-19 era, the Global Times reports. There have been no signs of the Biden administration attempting to rejoin the trade pact. U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai has also dodged questions about the U.S.' return to the TPP.
The CPTPP, signed in 2018, removes tariffs on an estimated 95% of goods traded between member countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Singapore. However, it is uncertain whether China will receive approval to join the agreement from all member countries as relations with Australia and Canada are deteriorating. Singapore welcomed China, but Japan's attitude is more ambiguous. Japan's Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu said that Japan must look properly at whether China is ready to fulfil the high requirements of the pact, and that Japan will confer with other member countries to handle China's application.
