TTC, IPEF, and the Road to an Indo-Pacific Trade Deal - A New Model

“TTC, IPEF, and the Road to an Indo-Pacific Trade Deal - A New Model” was co-written by Akin Gump public law and policy partner Clete Willems, who served in the Trump White House as Deputy Assistant to the President for International Economics, and Niels Graham, assistant director of the GeoEconomics Center, and was one of four publications launched at the inaugural Frankfurt Forum on US-European GeoEconomics held in Germany from September 27 to 29.

The report discusses the Biden-Harris administration’s “trade policy for the middle class” and the numerous trade dialogues and economic agreements being discussed around the world, such as the US-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC), the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF), and the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century Trade.

The authors applaud the administration for an agenda that “seeks to work with an unprecedented number of allies and partners and includes novel flexibilities to accommodate varying levels of development.” They note that the administration needs to consider how to coordinate them and also to raise the level of ambition within individual agreements and consider adding traditional market access components.

The report then surveys the current trading landscape, including the TTC and IPEF; looks at “friendshoring,” i.e., relying on a group of countries with shared values for manufacturing and sourcing of critical components and raw materials, and how the TTC and IPEF can be improved; and offers recommendations for an ambitious trade policy.

To read the full report, click here.