Today, Acting U.S. Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis commented on the announcement made by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan regarding the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP):
"The United States welcomes Prime Minister Abe's important announcement formally expressing Japan's interest in joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations," said Ambassador Marantis. "Since early last year, the United States has been engaged with Japan in bilateral TPP consultations on issues of concern with respect to the automotive and insurance sectors and other non-tariff measures, and also conducting work regarding meeting TPP's high standards.
"While we continue to make progress in these consultations, important work remains to be done. We look forward to continuing these consultations with Japan as the 11 TPP countries consider Japan's candidacy for this vital initiative in the Asia-Pacific region. We will continue to
