China shows renewed interest in joining trade pact Trump left in 2017

01/15/2021

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Kinling Lo | South China Morning Post

Beijing has provided another indication of its interest in joining the Comprehensive Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (CPTPP) by releasing a Chinese translation of its principal documents.

Since President Xi Jinping said last year that China was considering joining the pact, formerly backed by the United States, there have been questions whether it would be able to meet its terms of entry regarding state-owned enterprises, labour rights and e-commerce. But Beijing appears to be preparing nonetheless.

On Monday, the commerce ministry published a translation of the 30-chapter CPTPP document, which was signed by 11 countries in March 2018, along with the terms and conditions of becoming a member on its website. The pact’s official languages are English, French and Spanish.

Donald Trump pulled the US out of the pact but it remains to be seen if president-elect Joe Biden will reverse that course.

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