Bi-lateral and multi-lateral Free Trade Agreements are becoming increasingly important in maximizing regional and international trade. Due to the immense size of China, South Korea and Japan’s economies, it is important that all three negotiate and develop a China-South Korea-Japan Free Trade Area. Increased trade between the three will lead to increases in the size of all of their economies.

What’s on President Barack Obama’s agenda in Asia? As U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel’s trip to the Asia-Pacific comes to a close, Mel Gurtov turns his attention to Obama-s four-country trip at the end of April and highlights its significance for US alliance politics in Asia.

Asia Pacific economic cooperation is an essential part of today’s globalization process, however the process is at a crossroads with both TPP and RCEP under negotiation, write Tang Guoqiang and Wang Zhenyu.

In Beijing, many observers regard the TPP as the economic counterpart of U.S. rebalancing in Asia to contain China’s rise. On the other hand, if Beijing would participate in the talks, it could conceivable influence both the process and the future shape of the proposed trade pact.

With a new stage of reforms beginning, it is important for China to look outside its borders for economic reform. China aims to build a new major-power relationship with the U.S. and doing this should involve joining the TPP and other FTAs. Joining such agreements would bring a variety of benefits to the world’s second-largest economy.

China’s new leadership anticipates that entering Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations would trigger a new round of domestic reforms. Niu Tiehang elaborates on the new roadmap for Chinese reforms and the “outside-in” effects the TPP talks and the establishment of Shanghai FTZ would have on China.

The success of the Canada-EU Trade Agreement has allowed Canada to refocus its priorities on the US-led Trans-pacific Partnership trade talks and potentially paves the way for a larger free trade deal in the future. Hugh Stephens posits that as trade negotiations continue, Canada will position itself to take a stronger foothold in Asia.

As free trade agreements flourish around the globe, He Weiwen examines the developments between the China-ASEAN FTA and the Trans-Pacific Partnership noting that while the US and China have been left out of each negotiation respectively, it does not mean the countries are competing directly against each other.

With the US military reaching out to establish a better military-to-military dialogue with China, Canada’s military initiatives should have a positive impact on US-China military relations, writes Hugh Stephens.

Both the US and China, as the world two largest economies and members of G20, share a strong responsibility in supporting the common goal of establishing a job-rich, strong, sustainable and balanced growth path, writes He Weiwen.