Premier Li Keqiang Meets the Press: Full Transcript of Questions and Answers

Asahi Shimbun: COVID-19 has taken a big hit on the global economy. But China has been successful in bringing the spread of the virus under control. What does China plan to do to advance economic cooperation with Japan and other neighboring countries? What is China's plan for advancing the FTA among China, Japan and the Republic of Korea, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and other free trade arrangements? Does China have a plan to join the TPP?

Premier Li: I recall that last year at the leaders' meeting of East Asian cooperation, leaders of 15 countries made the commitment of signing the RCEP by the end of this year. I hope and believe that this commitment will not come to nothing. China, Japan and the ROK are also working closely together to advance their FTA development. The three countries are close neighbors, and we would like to work with the other two countries to develop a mini economic cycle within the bigger economic cycle. For example, recently China and the ROK have opened a fast-track service for personnel inter-flows in areas such as commerce and technology. We believe this will benefit the resumption of economic activities, and our geographical proximity has put us in a good position to benefit from this earlier.

As for your question about TPP, I suppose what you mean is the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). China has a positive and open attitude toward joining the CPTPP.