US-proposed 'Indo-Pacific Economic Framework' questioned

THE "Indo-Pacific Economic Framework" is the most mysterious and vague economic initiative after World War 2. In October 2021, US President Biden proposed the "Indo-Pacific Economic Framework" concept at the 16th East Asia Summit. The known content is full of policy goals, with little mention of specific plans and action programs. The framework is more like a political declaration. Public information shows that the United States has a strong unilateral dominance in the initiative, which not only excludes China completely, but also regards containment of China as the goal in the discussion of the framework by US officials.

The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework consists of four major sectors: promoting fair trade, improving supply chain resilience, decarbonizing infrastructure and clean energy and the environment, and taxation and anti-corruption. Except for the first section, which is carried out by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), the other three are all under the responsibility of the Ministry of Commerce, and no high-level representatives from other departments of the US government are ready to join the framework. The United States has repeatedly stressed that the framework is not a trade agreement and does not include market opening. The United States said that invited countries can choose to participate in any of the second, third and fourth blocks, but to join the first block that promotes fair trade, it must accept the other three blocks.