The US' top trade negotiator has spoken about how he is confident about establishing a Trans-Pacific Partnership deal. This would include a number of Southeast Asian countries, excluding Japan and China, which would be to the benefit of all involved.
Ron Kirk, the US trade representative, said: "I am reasonably confident we'll get the TPP finished before the [Asia-wide free trade zone] comes in to being. One way to inoculate yourself against strategic conflagrations is to make sure you have strong commercial relations. Countries that trade with one another don't go to war with one another. The United States is operating under a mandate from President Obama that we will use every avenue available to us to create new markets for American jobs at home."
This initiative is, in itself, part of a wider effort by the current administration to help cement ties between the US and Asia, partly to act against the rise of China's influence on the area. Territorial disputes in the region, which are the source of much tension, have attracted the attention of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who will visit the area.
Talks were first launched in 2012 and are now in the 14th round of negotiations, and Canada and Mexico are expected to join with the negotiation effort soon. New partners are also expected, but at present the nations involved are Australia, Chile, Brunei, Peru, Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand, the US and Vietnam.
Vietnam has shown itself to be one of the surprise packages, with Mr Kirk praising its contributions so far despite its inexperience in this area.
