The United States, China, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership  By
Daniel Chen, BASC Research Assistant  On March 9, 2012, the
eleventh round of the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations
came to a close. TPP, a “21st century trade agreement” that
spans three continents and covers a multitude of issues from
trade in goods and services to regulatory coherence, encompasses
nine members and hopes to be a centerpiece of increased
interaction in the Asia-Pacific region. TPP has become a
priority of the Obama Administration in its “pivot” back to
Asia, and one need only look at the TPP webpage at the USTR
website to understand that the United States is investing
considerable diplomatic energy in ensuring its creation.  TPP
makes strategic sense to the United States for three paramount
reasons. First, the Asia-Pacific is currently witnessing a rapid
proliferation of FTAs with varying trade standards and rules
that are diverse in scope, architecture, and objectives,
hindering trade and investment and preventing deeper i