Seminar & Forum TCS hosted the 3rd CJK FTA Seminar in Tokyo, Japan 2014-11-26
The Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat (TCS) hosted the 3rd CJK FTA Seminar in Tokyo, Japan on November 26, 2014, in collaboration with Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan; Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan; Ministry of Commerce of China; and Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of the Republic of Korea (ROK). The Seminar provided a unique platform where the negotiating teams, business representatives, experts and more than 120 participants of the three countries gathered and exchanged views on the significance of CJK FTA. 

In his opening remarks, Mr. IWATANI Shigeo, the TCS Secretary-General, expressed his belief that the recent revitalization of trilateral cooperation would give momentum to the development of CJK FTA. He also affirmed the TCS’ full support to the establishment of the CJK FTA, which would create a mega market with 21.5% of world population and 21% of world GDP, and essentially lay a firm foundation for deepening the trilateral cooperation. 

In the opening, the chief negotiators of CJK FTA from the three countries, namely, Mr. KIM Young-moo, Director-General for FTA Negotiations and East Asia FTA, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of the Republic of Korea; Mr. SUN Yuanjiang, Deputy Director-General, Department of International Trade and Economic Affairs, Ministry of Commerce of China; and Mr. SATO Tatsuo, Deputy Director-General, Economic Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, delivered remarks and all shared the view that CJK FTA should be high-level and comprehensive with balance of interest, so that it would contribute to enhancing the dynamism of the three countries' economies and be the model agreement for East Asian economic integration. 

The following 3 sessions, speakers and panelists had in-depth discussions on the investment framework, industrial cooperation and rules of origin in CJK FTA. It was generally observed that CJK FTA should be conducive to strengthening and upgrading the global value chain in which the three countries were closely connected. Moreover, the importance of creating a business-friendly framework through CJK FTA was mentioned. 

At the seminar, the TCS also distributed “Insight into CJK FTA” booklet to aid deeper understanding of CJK FTA. For the seminar program and presentation materials of the speakers, please refer to the attachments below. 

2. Session 1: CJK FTA’s Role in Developing Investment framework in and beyond CJK by Dr. NAKAGAWA Junji, Professor of International Economic Law, Institute of Social Science, the University of Tokyo 
3. Session 2: Prospects for CJK Industrial Cooperation by Prof. ZHANG Qi, Deputy Director-General of the Research Department of Foreign Economic Relations, Development Research Centre of the State Council of China 
4. Session 3: Global Trends in Mega-RTAs: Implications for Rules of Origin in CJK FTA by Dr. KIM Jong-bum, Professor of International Trade Law, Graduate School for International Studies, Yonsei University 

Group photo of the 3rd CJK FTA Seminar 
(from left to right) Mr. SUN Yuanjiang, Mr. SATO Tatsuo, Mr. IWATANI Shigeo, and Mr. KIM Young-moo
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