Japan tells U.S. it will keep nothing off the table in TPP negotiations

Japan on Tuesday explained to the United States its basic stance regarding the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations, saying it will put all items on the table once it joins the multilateral trade framework, a senior Japanese government official said. Japan revealed its stance during the first preliminary talks with the United States in Washington on its bid for full participation in TPP negotiations. According to Takeshi Yagi, director general of the Foreign Ministry's Economic Affairs Bureau, politically sensitive items, such as rice, will not be excluded from negotiations. However, in future negotiations, Japan will likely explore the possibility of treating these items as exceptions to tariff eliminations, observers said. (Yomiuri)