Chinese Changing Perspective on the Development of an East Asian Free Trade Area

Abstract

As a new stage of the policy of opening to the outside world, China's changing perspective and policy regarding an East Asian Free Trade Area (FTA) reflects Beijing's efforts to actively respond to changing internal and external conditions so as to further promote the country's economic development. It also reflects Beijing's growing confidence in overcoming the negative effects of deeper and broader integration into the regional and global economy. On the other hand, Beijing's recent moves in negotiating free trade pacts with neighboring economies will inevitably bring significant impact on the regional and global political economy.

Notes

Kevin G. Cai is Assistant Professor in the Department of Asia Pacific Studies at San Diego State University, USA.

The author would like to thank the Center for International Business Education and Research of San Diego State University for funding the research for this article.

As China has made persistent efforts for GATT/WTO membership since 1986, there now exist plenty of studies on this issue by Western scholars. However, as regional free trade arrangement is a most recent policy issue facing the Chinese government, there is still a dearth of literature on the subject in the West. For a most recent series of discussion on China and WTO, see the articles by Pieter Bottelier (pp. 397–411), Paul Thiers (pp. 413–31), Icksoo Kim (pp. 433–58), Susan D. Blum (pp. 459–72), and Godfrey Yeung (pp. 473–93), all published in Journal of Contemporary China, Vol. 11, No. 32 (Aug. 1, 2002).

For a comprehensive discussion of the EU, see David M. Wood and Birol A. Yesilada, The Emerging European Union, Second Edition (New York: Longman Publishers, 2002).

For a comprehensive study of China's foreign economic policy during Mao's period, see Lawrence C. Reardon, The Reluctant Dragon: Crisis Cycles in Chinese Foreign Economic Policy (Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 2002). Also see Shuguang Zhang, Economic Cold War: America's Embargo against China and the Sino-Soviet Alliance, 1949–1963 (Washington, DC: Woodrow Wilson Center Press, 2001).

Li Xiang-yang, ‘The Feasibility of Establishing a Free Trade Area among Japan, South Korea and China’, China & World Economy, Vol. 10, No. 1 (2002), p. 13.

Song Deling and Li Guanghui, ‘Jia qiang dong ya qu yu he zuo cu jin zhong guo jing ji fa zhan’ (Economic cooperation in East Asia Region enhanced to promote economic development in China [sic]), International Economic Cooperation, No. 5 (2002), p. 27; Tong Fuquan, ‘Bi ran de gou xiang – zhong guo-dong meng zi you mao yi qu gou xiang yu nan ti’ (A Just-in-Concept: The blueprint of China-ASEAN free trade zone [sic]), Intertrade, No. 2 (2002), pp. 24–25.

Song and Li, ‘Economic cooperation in East Asia Region’, p. 27; Zhong Wei, ‘Wu ren fu ze ya zhou’ (No one is responsible for Asia), China Reform, No. 2 (2002), pp. 16–17.

Song and Li, ‘Economic cooperation in East Asia Region’,pp. 28 and 30.

Wang Jian, ‘Cong ‘ni ke song zhu yi’ kan shi jie xin ge ju’ (To look at the pattern of the new world from Nigersonism [sic]), China Reform, No. 2 (2002), p. 12.

Ibid.

Kevin G. Cai, ‘Is a Free Trade Zone Emerging in Northeast Asia in the Wake of the Asian Financial Crisis?’, Pacific Affairs, Vol. 74, No. 1 (Spring 2001), p. 11; Richard Stubbs, ‘ASEAN Plus Three: Emerging East Asian Regionalism?’, Asian Survey, Vol. XLII, No. 3 (May/June 2002), pp. 448–50; Song and Li, ‘Economic cooperation in East Asia Region’, p. 27.

See, for example, Fang Du, ‘Jing ji quan qiu hua yu qu yu hua ying xiang qu shi ji dui ce’, (Economic Globalization and Regionalization: Impact, Trends, and Strategy), International Economic Cooperation, No. 7 (2002), pp. 42–43; Wang Hexing, ‘Jing ji quan qiu hua ji qi shi dai te zheng’, (Economic Globalization and its Characteristics of the Times [sic]), International Studies, No. 2 (2002), pp. 12–13; Li Changjiu, ‘Jing ji quan qiu hua yu shi jie xing shi’ (Economic Globalization and World Situation), International Studies, No. 2 (2002), pp. 14–20.

Wang, ‘Economic Globalization and its Characteristics of the Times’, p. 12.

Li, ‘The Feasibility of Establishing a Free Trade Area’, p. 12.

Song and Li, ‘Economic cooperation in East Asia Region’, p. 29.

Ibid., p. 27.

See, for example, Wang, ‘To look at the pattern of the new world from Nigersonism’, p. 12.

Weng Tiejun, ‘Wu fa fu zhi de xian dai hua’ (Modernization can't copy), China Reform, No. 2 (2002), p. 15.

For such a view, see He Fan, ‘Zhong guo zhan lue – quan qiu hua’ (China's Strategy – Globalization), China Reform, No. 2 (2002), pp. 24–25. For a review of competing views on the issue of globalization, see Lu Zhengyang, ‘Guan yu jing ji quan qiu hua wen ti’ (On Economic Globalization), China Economic & Trade Herald, No. 7 (2002), pp. 12–14.

Song and Li, ‘Economic cooperation in East Asia Region’, p.31; Qin Haijing, ‘Zhong guo de xuan ze: 10 + 1’ (Chinese Choice: ‘10 + 1’), China Reform, No. 2 (2002), pp. 20–21. Wang Yizhou also expresses a similar view when discussing the issue of Asian regional union, cited from Pan Guangjun, ‘Shui lai ling dao ya zhou: ri ben hai shi zhong guo’ (Who does lead Asia: Japan or China? [sic]), p. 19.

See, for example, Qin, ‘Chinese Choice: “10 + 1”’, p. 21; Gao Lianfu, ‘Yu ji you li geng yu ren you li – Zhong guo he ri ben yu dong men guo jia qu yu jing ji he zuo fang an bi jiao’ (Positive-sum – A Comparison of the Chinese and Japanese plans for Regional Economic Cooperation with ASEAN), Intertrade, No. 4 (April 2002), p. 20. But a few Chinese scholars do not think it necessary to have a leadership role in a regional economic organization. The scholars with this view are obviously in a minority. See Li, ‘The Feasibility of Establishing a Free Trade Area’, p. 13.

See, for example, Zhong, ‘No one is responsible for Asia’, p. 17.

See, for example, He Li-ping, ‘East Asian Monetary Cooperation: Necessities and Constraints’, China & World Economy, Vol. 10, No. 1 (2002), pp. 15–19; Liu Shuguang, ‘Dong ya huo bi he zuo de qian jing yu zhong guo de zuo yong’ (Monetary Cooperation in East Asia: Prospect and China's Role), International Economic Cooperation, No. 2 (2002), pp. 59–62.

Song and Li, ‘Economic cooperation in East Asia Region’, pp. 27–29.

See, for example, Chi Fulin, ‘“ Zhong guo zi you mao yi qu” jian cheng qi hou’ (‘The free trade area of China’ will form step by step), China Reform, No. 2 (2002), pp. 22–23; Wei Yanshen, ‘Ming zhi xuan ze – jian li zhong hua zi you mao yi qu chu tan’ (A Wise Option: Tentative ideas on the establishment of China free trade zone [sic]), Intertrade, No. 5 (May 2002), pp. 29–32; Cao Xiaoheng, ‘Zhong guo da lu jing ji zou xiang yu liang an jing ji he zuo qian zhan’ (Mainland China's Economic Trend and Perspective of the Economic Cooperation between the Both Sides of the Taiwan Straits [sic]), Taiwan Studies, No. 2 (2002), pp. 15–22.

Yan Shenggang and Guo Can, ‘Quan qiu hua bei jing xia de zhong guo ru shi: jin cheng, ji yu yu tiao zhan’ (China's Entry into WTO in the Context of Globalization: Opportunities and Challenges), International Studies, No. 1 (2002), p. 19.

Zhou Zhihuai, ‘Lun hai xia liang an jing mao guan xi de zhi du hua an pai’ (On the Systematizing Arrangement of the Cross-Strait Economic and Trade Relations [sic]), Taiwan Studies, No. 2 (2002), pp. 7–14.

See, for example, Feng Xiao-ming, ‘China and ASEAN Can Share the Prosperity Together – Interview with Zhang Yun-ling, Director, Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies, CASS’, China & World Economy, Vol. 10, No. 1 (2002), p. 7.

For this view, see, for example, Li, ‘The Feasibility of Establishing a Free Trade Area’, pp. 9–14.

Zhong, ‘No one is responsible for Asia’, p. 17.

For more discussion on this issue, see Cai, ‘Is a Free Trade Zone Emerging in Northeast Asia?’, pp. 7–24.

Feng, ‘China and ASEAN Can Share the Prosperity Together’, p. 7.

Li, ‘The Feasibility of Establishing a Free Trade Area’, p. 13.

Tang Jiaxuan and Shi Guangsheng, ‘Actively Participating in Regional Cooperation To Host the APEC Grand Meeting of the Century’, Renmin Ribao (People's Daily), Oct. 16, 2001 (from ‘China: Tang Jiaxuan, Shi Guangsheng on Hosting Successful APEC Meeting in Shanghai’, FBIS-CHI-2001-1016, http://wnc.fedworld.gov, Oct. 16, 2001).

Feng, ‘China and ASEAN Can Share the Prosperity Together’, p. 3; Li, ‘The Feasibility of Establishing a Free Trade Area’, p. 9.

Feng, ‘China and ASEAN Can Share the Prosperity Together’, p. 3.

For a discussion of APT and APO, see Stubbs, ‘ASEAN Plus Three: Emerging East Asian Regionalism?’, pp. 440–455.

Song and Li, ‘Economic cooperation in East Asia Region’, p. 31.

Wei Min, ‘Zhong guo dong men zi you mao yi qu de gou xiang yu qian jing’ (The Conceptualization of China-ASEAN Free Trade Area and Its Prospect), International Studies, No. 4 (2002), p. 51.

Ibid., pp. 52–54.

Gao, ‘Positive-sum’, p. 21.

Wei, ‘The Conceptualization of China-ASEAN Free Trade Area and Its Prospect’, p. 52.

Cited from ibid., p. 53.

Feng, ‘China and ASEAN Can Share the Prosperity Together’, p. 7.

Wei, ‘The Conceptualization of China-ASEAN Free Trade Area and Its Prospect’, p. 53.

The above discussion of the China-ASEAN FTA relies heavily on Kevin G. Cai, ‘The ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement and East Asian Regional Grouping,’ Contemporary Southeast Asia, Vol. 25, No. 3 (2003), pp. 395–400.

‘Wen: CEPA is special arrangement under “one country, two systems”’, China Daily, June 29, 2003, available at: http://www1.chinadaily.com.cn.

‘Zhuan jia zhi nei di yu xiang gang CEPA shi “da zhong hua jing ji quan” de qi dian’ (Experts Note that Mainland-Hong Kong CEPA Is the Starting Point of the ‘Grand Chinese Economic Zone), China News, June 29, 2003, available at: http://www.chinanews.com.

Feng, ‘China and ASEAN Can Share the Prosperity Together’, p. 4.

Li, ‘The Feasibility of Establishing a Free Trade Area’, pp. 9 and 13.

Wei, ‘The Conceptualization of China-ASEAN Free Trade Area and Its Prospect’, p. 55.

Hu Zhaoming, ‘Dong ya he zuo de xian zhuang yu wei lai’ (East Asian Cooperation: Present and Prospects), International Studies, No. 1 (2002), p. 23.

Ibid., p. 25; Qin, ‘Chinese Choice: “10 + 1”’, p. 21. A Chinese scholar, Wang Yizhou, also expresses a similar view when discussing the issue of Asian regional union, cited from Pan, ‘Who does lead Asia: Japan or China?’ p. 19.

For a general discussion of this issue, see Song and Li, ‘Economic cooperation in East Asia Region’, p. 31. For a specific discussion of SCO, see Li Gang and Liu Huaqin, ‘Final Target: Research on Development Model of Regional Economic Cooperation for Shanghai Cooperation Organization’, Intertrade, No. 3 (March 2002), pp. 4–11. For a specific discussion of the Tumen River project, see Andrew Marton, Terry McGee, and Donald G. Paterson, ‘Northeast Asian Economic Cooperation and the Tumen River Area Development Project’, Pacific Affairs, Vol. 68, No. 1 (Spring 1995), pp. 8–33.

Feng, ‘China and ASEAN Can Share the Prosperity Together’, p. 3.

Dong Fureng, ‘On “Theory of China Threat”’, Hong Kong Ta Kung Pao, Feb. 2, 2002 (from ‘PRC Economist Refutes Theory of China as Economic Threat to Asian Countries’, FBIS-CHI-2002–0202, http://wnc.fedworld.gov, Feb. 2, 2002).

Li, ‘The Feasibility of Establishing a Free Trade Area’, p. 9.

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Notes on contributors

Kevin G Cai

Kevin G. Cai is Assistant Professor in the Department of Asia Pacific Studies at San Diego State University, USA.