The Philippines and the UAE have applied to join the CPTPP
The Philippines and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). South Korea is also considering joining. Against the backdrop of increased tariffs by the Trump administration in the United States and the global spread of protectionism due to US-China tensions, CPTPP members such as Japan are becoming bulwarks in defending free trade alongside Europe.
The Philippines and the UAE submitted their applications to New Zealand, which serves as the secretariat, in August. This information was revealed by a Japanese government official. This is the first time in about a year that a country has submitted an application since Indonesia submitted its application in September 2024.
The CPTPP is a framework for eliminating tariffs on numerous categories of goods and unifying rules on intellectual property rights. Twelve countries, including Japan, have joined, and Costa Rica is advancing accession negotiations. In addition, eight other countries and regions, including the Philippines and the UAE, have submitted applications and are awaiting the start of negotiations.
For an applicant country to initiate accession negotiations, it must obtain the consent of all 12 member countries. New negotiating participants will be determined at the CPTPP ministerial meeting, which is expected to be held as early as 2025. The two sides will consult on issues such as the extent to which tariffs will be eliminated. If all member countries agree, the new member can be confirmed.
For example, the UK took more than two years from application to signing the accession agreement.
In the Philippines, which has submitted its accession application, there have been calls from the business community for it to join the CPTPP due to Trump’s tariffs. The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) issued a statement saying, “The CPTPP is crucial to the economy in the context of increasing global trade decoupling.”
The Philippines has also signed an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with Japan and is promoting trade liberalization. Negotiations for joining the CPTPP are considered a “potential candidate” in terms of economic and foreign policy (according to a Japanese negotiator).
Furthermore, the Philippines also intends to deepen its economic relations with countries like Japan. In terms of security, it signed a Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) with Japan in 2025 to facilitate the mutual movement of troops. For Japan, this elevates its relationship with the Philippines to a “quasi-alliance” level, second only to the UK and Australia. If the Philippines joins the CPTPP, cooperation with like-minded countries with similar values will become more diversified. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) was the first Middle Eastern country to apply for membership in the CPTPP. This is part of the country’s economic reforms to reduce its reliance on oil revenue. To expand trade and attract direct investment from abroad, the UAE is pushing forward with free trade agreements (FTAs) and economic protection agreements (EPAs). In October, the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPAs) between the UAE and Australia and Malaysia came into effect. EPA negotiations with Japan are also ongoing.
From the results, the US tariff increases are making joining the CPTPP free trade framework more attractive. South Korea also announced in September that it was exploring joining. South Korea’s tariff negotiations with the US started later than Japan’s. The Trump administration had been imposing a 25% tariff on South Korean cars, but by the end of October, a summit-level agreement was finally reached to reduce it to 15%. The expansion of the CPTPP will also help boost the Japanese economy. The Japanese government estimated in 2017 that the CPTPP would increase Japan’s real GDP by approximately 1.5%. With 11 countries (excluding the United States) joining the CPTPP, trade liberalization can boost domestic personal consumption and equipment investment in Japan. As more member countries join, this boosting effect is expected to further expand. The GDP of the 12 CPTPP member countries accounts for approximately 15% of the world’s total.
China has applied to join the CPTPP multiple times.