日本語
English
中国語
The fourth round of China-Japan-Korea trilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA) talks ended on March 7 in Seoul without much progress. China’s Xinhua reported that the talks dealt with substantive issues relating to tariff reduction, opening service trade and investment. No breakthrough was made on what would be an historic agreement affecting the three dynamic economies. The three account for 20% of global gross domestic product and 17.5 % of global trade.
Trilateral trade negotiations were first discussed at the 2012 meeting of the Trilateral Summit. After the nationalization of the Diaoyu/Senkaku islands, the political climate has deteriorated. Continued territorial and historical disputes have only increased tensions and heightened distrust among the parties. Despite a charged and gloomy atmosphere, talks have continued to be held, and some measurable progress has been made. The next round of talks in 2014 is scheduled to be held in China in July.
(Map: Wikipedia Commons)