Japan's FTA policy: the origins, development and nature

Abstract

For more than four decades Japan has not supported any discriminative free trade agreements (FTAs). However, since 1998 she has gradually changed its stance and started FTA discussions with Mexico, South Korea and Singapore. In these circumstances, this thesis examines the main factors that have contributed to the origins, development and nature of the FTA policy in Japan. It is hypothesized that Japana??s policy changes in favor of FTAs occurred as a result of normative changes in its foreign trade policy. Japan adopted the norm of discriminative bilateral trade liberalization into its non-discriminative trade policy practice. Furthermore, it is argued that Japan was reactive and passive in changing its conventional trade policy. The rationale for its reluctance to embrace changes was rooted not only in the structure of Japana??s domestic politics but also in the compatibility of the new norm of discriminative trade liberalization under FTAs vis-? -vis traditional trade principles of non-discriminative trade..