Policy Backgrounders

Trade Policy in the Pacific Region

February 09, 2022

The Biden Administration is planning to announce its strategy shortly for economic re-engagement with the Asia Pacific region, in the wake of US withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership in 2017. The news of an impending new strategy comes on the heels of a recent, little-noted development in transpacific trade – one that did not involve the United States – which holds out the prospect of renewed progress towards freer trade in the Asia-Pacific region and serves, as yet, another wake-up call for the United States to reengage its Pacific partners in this area. So far, the United States has continued to sit mostly on the sidelines.