Trump Tariffs Re-Energize Stalled Japan-Korea-China FTA

2025-03-31 03:22:09

(MENAFN- Asia Times) After US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's visit to mark the 80^th anniversary of the World War II battle of Iwo Jima, the US-Japan military alliance appears to be in good health.

However, the same cannot be said for the two allies' economic relations after President Donald Trump's recent announcement of additional 25% tariffs on imported autos, including those made in Japan.

The Japanese regard this as both a serious threat to their domestic economy and a broken promise . In 2019, during his first term, Trump told then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe that he would not impose additional tariffs on Japanese autos and auto parts.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said,“We strongly urged [the US government] to exclude Japan from the measure,” adding that US tariffs could have a“large impact on bilateral economic ties, the global economy and the multilateral trading system.”

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba told Diet members,“We must consider steps to respond appropriately. We have all possible options on the table.” Those options are generally regarded to be such standard measures as filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization or imposing retaliatory tariffs. But bigger trading order shifts could be afoot.

On Sunday, Japan, South Korea and China held their first economic dialogue in five years in a bid to jointly facilitate regional trade in the face of Trump's rising tariffs.

The countries' three trade ministers agreed to“closely cooperate for comprehensive and high-level” talks on a South Korea-Japan-China free trade agreement deal to promote“regional and global trade”, according to a statement released after the meeting cited by wire reports .

“It is necessary to strengthen the implementation of RCEP, in which all three countries have participated, and to create a framework for expanding trade cooperation among the three countries through Korea-China-Japan FTA negotiations,” said South Korean Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun, referring to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership trade pact.

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