Category Archives: Trade Talks

【News】 Ministers see distance to agreement on TPP (July 12, 2014)

  Chief negotiators of the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks are due to wind up 10 days of negotiations on Saturday, July 12, in Ottawa, but TPP minister Akira Amari said on Friday, July 11, that the member countries are not ready to hold a ministerial gathering this time, as differences still exist among them, notably the United States and Japan. Agriculture minister Yoshimasa Hayashi also said the same day the negotiations will continue on a working level. Amari stressed that in order to hold a ministerial meeting, gaps among member countries need to become narrow enough for ministers to solve in a short period of time. Chief negotiators of the … Continue reading

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【Editorial】 Japan must stand as one against pressure to open markets (May 22, 2014)

  Ministerial meeting of the Trans-Pacific Partnership member nations in Singapore ended without much progress. However, when Prime Ministecxgvcr Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Barack Obama met in April, the two nations are reported to have agreed on a “formula” to reach a bilateral deal, and worries are growing among the public over the possibility that Japanese negotiators would make a compromise regarding tariffs on key agricultural products. Rounds of TPP negotiations are expected to take place before chief negotiators meet in July, and we must work together to reaffirm domestic consensus on the negotiating policies. What the negotiators mean by the term “formula” is to find common ground by … Continue reading

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【News】 US reluctant to introduce safeguard measures for Japanese farm products (May 21, 2014)

  Hirobumi Senbongi – Singapore The United States negotiators have opposed to introducing safeguard measures for Japan’s key agricultural products in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks, it was learned Tuesday, May 20.As Japan and the U.S. resumed bilateral negotiations in Singapore along with the two-day ministerial meeting of the TPP member nations, the U.S. kept its hard-line stance over the measures which were seen as a key to reaching broad agreement, according to Japanese government sources. The two nations, the biggest economies in the TPP, are said to have agreed on a “formula” with which they can seal a bilateral deal on the remaining issues, when they held marathon talks … Continue reading

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【News】 Farmers and consumers ask government to maintain tariffs on key farm products (May 15, 2014)

  Farmers and consumer organizations jointly held a protest rally on Wednesday in Tokyo, calling for protection of tariffs on key farm products in the negotiations under the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks. Participants of the meeting, held at Hibiya Open-Air Concert Hall in Chiyoda Ward, adopted a resolution asking the government and lawmakers to keep the Diet resolutions which state the need to maintain the tariffs and also disclose information on the negotiations. After the meeting, they marched to Nagatacho where the Diet buildings are located. More than 3,000 people nationwide attended the meeting co-sponsored by eight organizations – the Central Union of Agricultural Co-operatives (JA-Zenchu), the National Chamber of … Continue reading

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【News】 Young farmers protest against TPP (May 14, 2014)

  The Japan Agricultural Cooperative group’s youth association members staged a sit-in on Tuesday, May 13, in front of the Lower House members’ office building in Tokyo, calling for protection of Japanese agricultural products. Prior to the ministerial meeting of the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks scheduled on May 19 and 20 in Singapore, 150 young farmers nationwide gathered and urged the government and Diet members to keep the Diet resolutions which stated that key farm products be exempt from tariff elimination.They put up signs saying they are strongly against Japan’s participation in the TPP talks and that Japan’s food, lives and agriculture should be protected from market liberalization under the … Continue reading

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