South Korea to apply for membership in Asia-Pacific Free Trade Agreement in April: Minister

South Korea plans to apply for membership of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) on an expedited basis in April 2022, the country’s Finance Minister, Hong Nam-ki said on Monday. According to Russian news agency Sputnik, a ministerial task force will be set up by Seoul to discuss the possible outcomes of joining the CPTPP, Hong noted during a meeting with trade and export officials, Sputnik reported citing the Yonhap news agency. South Korea is aiming to finish the first step in a long and complicated admission process in mid-April 2022 by fast-track building of social consensus on the matter, Hong added.

CPTPP is a major free-trade bloc made up of 11 nations including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam with the objective of supporting sustainable and inclusive economic development. CPTPP was launched on December 30, 2018. Sputnik reported that according to the block’s rules, the accession process is preceded by several rounds of talks, both inside the CPTPP and with the applicant state, creation of working groups and completion of necessary reforms. At the start of September, China officially applied to join CPTPP. The UK has also formally applied to join the pact on February 1 this year, and its accession process began on June 2, it added. (ANI)