In the wake of President Donald J. Trump signing an executive action today that withdrew the United States from the negotiating process of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) — a trade agreement between the U.S. and 11 Pacific Rim countries — experts from the nonpartisan Stimson Center released the following statements. The withdrawal from TPP comes as President Trump is expected to sign an executive order as soon as this week to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

Nate Olson, Director, Trade21 Program, Stimson Center: “Tearing things down is easy. Producing something meaningful and enduring is hard. That’s especially true in global trade — all the more so when you’re the United States. By washing its hands of TPP, and preparing similar moves on NAFTA, the Trump administration is likely taking an easy road to a very hard lesson.”

William Reinsch, Distinguished Fellow, Stimson Center: “The decision to abandon TPP, while entirely expected, is still disappointing. It not only signifies a missed opportunity to grow American exports, but it will be read in Asia as signaling a loss of U.S. interest in the region. That opens the door to the expansion of Chinese influence, which is not in our long-term economic or political interest.”

The Stimson Center is a nonpartisan policy research center working to solve the world’s greatest threats to security and prosperity.

Contact: Jim Baird: [email protected], (202)478.3413.

Photo credit: Danielle Bauer via Flickr