Unlike most trade agreements, participants need not sign on to every single IPEF pillar. States can choose which pillars they wish to participate in based on their national interests. In that sense, IPEF is distinct from previous US trade initiatives such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in that instead of emphasising the quality of the deal, IPEF appears to be aiming to include as many regional states as possible regardless of their position on trade.
Having been on the backfoot in Asia-Pacific trade in recent years, the US seeks to return to the region and compete economically with China again. It has launched a series of trade agreements with regional players, with the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) being the most pivotal. While not a traditional trade agreement in the sense of providing market access to US trading partners, it calls for participants to cooperate on four main “pillars”. (See Chart 1)
