Australia and New Zealand

HANOI – Trade officials from Japan, Australia and New Zealand, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ministers meeting here, told Inside U.S. Trade they were not in favor of reopening provisions of the Trans-Pacific Partnership as a way to ensure its entry into force without the United States – citing a potential unraveling of the deal and the maintenance of the high standards agreed to when the U.S. was still involved.

HANOI -- U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, at his first public appearance here during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation trade ministers meeting, said the U.S. defending its own market against unfair trade practices should not be confused with protectionism -- the definition of which, he claims, “is sort of migrating.”

“The view of many countries is we shouldn't start unstitching that agreement.”

Tokyo eyes Australia, New Zealand as key partners in a smaller agreement.

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, standing alongside Vice President Mike Pence, said Saturday that the U.S. had the right to end its participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership and that “each nation is committed to protecting its economic interests first and foremost,” while Pence reiterated the U.S. “America-first” policy and the administration’s preference for bilateral trade deals.

VINA DEL MAR, CHILE -- New Zealand’s trade minister Todd McClay says he is not concerned about Auckland’s trade relationship with the U.S. under President Trump, but believes it is too early to speculate about the potential for a bilateral deal.

Ambassadors from South Korea, Vietnam and Australia are keen to keep at least portions of the Trans-Pacific Partnership alive, even if it means moving forward with a regional agreement that excludes the U.S. and includes the eleven other Asia-Pacific countries, as well as others.

The U.S. has confirmed it will send a representative to a trade summit in Chile on March 14-15, according to a spokeswoman from the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, though the U.S. has yet to say who it will be.