Japan beef

The TPP11 Choice in a World of Increasing FTA Complexity

The split viewpoints on TPP11 are replicated in nearly every TPP country.  Businesses, consumer groups and politicians are grappling with an agreement negotiated in one context (a deal that included 12 members) and trying to decide if it still makes sense to proceed in another (an agreement with 11).  The choice, however, is not really between doing a TPP11 deal or not doing the TPP11 and the status quo prior to launching the TPP negotiations.  The choice is really between moving ahead with the TPP11 or not in the context of a continuing changing trade environment.  It is this last point that is often overlooked.  The trade world has not stood still since 2010 when the TPP negotiations got underway.  Indeed, it continues to evolve even after the TPP talks wrapped up in late 2015.