Abe Played Down TPP Disagreeement

The Japanese government wanted to avoid using the expression “a basic agreement” in the joint statement over Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations with the United States because it was concerned about the impact the words would have on Sunday's House of Representatives by-election in Kagoshima Prefecture Constituency No. 2, a Japanese government source said.

Japanese media reported they “put off a broad agreement” or “failed to reach an agreement” on their front pages.  While Abe and his cabinet members insisted "basic agreement" had been reached.  Even the US side, including President Obama as he left Japan, noted an agreement was far from being reached.

A Liberal Democratic Party official who read the evening papers groaned aloud and said, “Hey, which is right?”

Akira Amari, state minister in charge of TPP issues, and U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman ended the ministerial-level bilateral TPP negotiations Thursday evening, and had another round of talks Friday morning for about an hour before both sides stopped as Obama was leaving.

When Amari was asked Friday morning by reporters whether the two sides had reached a basic agreement, he said, “That’s not the case.”

On the surface, it is natural to infer that Tokyo and Washington did have a meeting the next day because they had failed to close the gap between them during the bilateral working-level talks Thursday.  Yet the hour meeting was less than hopeful.

According to a source close to the negotiators, Amari and Froman were unable to reach an agreement on all major points by Thursday evening, meaning there was no need to have other talks Friday morning.

Abe on Saturday still insisted Froman and Amari reached a basic agreement and cautioned LDP members from saying otherwise so as not to jeopardize the election in Kagoshima.

The Yomiuri News