The United States is to push its trade agenda in next week's Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation ( APEC) forum in Hawaii, using the gathering of heads of 21 major economies to advance the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and create more U.S. exporting jobs, U.S. experts said Tuesday.
"If we are going to move out of this recession, Asia is going to be part of that equation," said Ernest Bower, senior adviser and director of Southeast Asia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington thinktank.
"Asia is where we are going to grow," Bower told a briefing previewing the APEC meetings, which will see heads of 21 economies in the Asia-Pacific rim gather to discuss trade and economic issues facing the region. U.S. President Barack Obama, Chinese President Hu Jintao, as well as leaders of other major economies in the region will attend.
The U.S. side has outlined the theme of the forum as green growth, next generation trade expansion and regional economic integration efforts represented by TPP, and regulatory cooperation and convergence.
Michael Green, senior adviser and Japan Chair at CSIS, said economies are likely to engage in bilateral negotiations to exchange technology on environmental goods and services, while the broad outcome of green growth in APEC is likely to be aspirational.
"That's why I think the substantive message (at APEC for the United States)... is TPP," said Green, noting it's likely to be one of the building blocks of trade liberalization agenda the U.S. pursues, alongside Free Trade Agreement with South Korea, ratified by Congress last month.
The U.S. is aggressively pushing TPP, an Asia-Pacific regional trade agreement being negotiated among the United States and eight other partners, namely Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
Ron Kirk, U.S. Trade Representative, said last week the United States is seeking "frank resolution to problems that affect exporters within the region," in a speech at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.