Trevor Hunnicutt, Elaine Lies

TOKYO (Reuters). President Joe Biden unveils his plan to U.S. economic involvement in Asia. The 13 founding nations will work together to implement their agreements, and if China can ever become a member.

Biden will unveil the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity in Tokyo, his first visit to Asia.

Although the White House claims that the deal does not offer any tariff relief or access to market to those countries, it allows for a process to resolve key issues like climate change, supply chain resilience, and digital trade.

It is crucial to Biden’s strategy to combat China, which he considers Washington’s biggest competitor overseas. Since former President Donald Trump renounced a multilateral trans-Pacific trade deal, Washington has been without an economic pillar for its Indo-Pacific engagement. This left the field wide open to China’s expansion.

U.S. Commerce secretary Gina Raimondo said that the launch “marks a significant turning point in restoring U.S.economic leadership in this region, and presenting Indo-Pacific states an alternative approach to China’s treatment of these critical issues.”

Biden seeks to increase standards of environmental and labor in Asia through the proposed deal. However, any agreements will be determined by the first countries to join the discussions: Australia, Brunei (India, Indonesia), Japan, South Korea and Malaysia.

The countries involved will collaborate to determine the standard they would like to adhere to and their enforcement methods. They will also need to decide if their respective national legislatures must ratify them.

Taiwan was also left out of initial negotiations. Taiwan wanted to be a member.

Jake Sullivan, the U.S. National Safety Advisor, told journalists on Air Force One Taiwan wouldn’t be part of the IPEF Launch but said that Washington was still seeking to improve its economic relations with Taiwan. China has claimed Taiwan as their territory.

Sullivan stated that the inclusion of new members would be discussed in a briefing later.

“On China broadly speaking, the same thing I just stated would apply in that case.”

IPEF seeks to preserve some benefits of participating in a larger trade agreement, such as Trump’s Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (formerly known as TPP), but with no U.S. political opposition. This deal is feared to cost jobs.

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said that TPP was not as strong and envisioned. “The greatest problem was we didn’t have the support back home to make it happen.”

Beijing had a dim view about the IPEF.

China is open to regional initiatives that strengthen cooperation, but Wang Yi, Foreign Minister said in a statement that it “opposes attempts at creating division and confrontation.” “The Asia-Pacific must be an area of peaceful development and not geopolitical gladiatorial.