Japan's FTA Strategy in the 21th Century: Leveraging between RCEP and TPP

Abstract

As the FTAs took effect in the 1990s, Japan started to gravitate towards Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) and Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) to respond to multiple challenges and competition wrought by the international business community. Initially, Japan had to confront/overcome its trade diversion by easing on competition abroad spearheaded by NAFTA and Mexico- EU FTA which contributed hugely to Japan's trade deficit. To respond to these losses, Japan deployed and capitalized on the architect of the Asia Pacific to counter emerging networks of bilateral FTAs to advance Japan's opportunities and leverages in East Asia/ASEAN markets. To ensure success, Japan's FTA negotiations were navigated by Keidanren. Generally speaking, since 2000, multilateralism and trade arrangements have restored their reputation to thrive in finance, trade and security in the regional architecture of the Asia Pacific landscape. Regarding trade, multilateralism networks embody itself in the FTAs networks as ＂ASEAN + N＂; TPP; RCEP; China-Japan- Korea FTA inter alia. Specifically, Japan responded with such shifts enthusiastically by combining its diplomatic and developmental goals to thrive. But as the wind of change took effect in recent years, the different approaches initiated by the United States and China (TPP and RCEP) also represented two doctrines in the Asian Pacific regional economic integration that have had adverse implications. Before, the Asia Pacific integration was spearhead and denominated by the ＂Asia Pacific Doctrine＂ and ＂East Asia Doctrine＂. Currently, the Asian Pacific integration revolve around the TPP and RCEP. The question becomes: How can Japan operate and manipulate these two mega-FTAs as leverage to thrive in the neo-regionalism and multilateralism frameworks? The lacunae of this article explores/analyze the impacts and implications of TPP and RCEP arrangement to Japan.