英國尋求在退歐后加入TPP

Britain has held informal talks about joining a flagship Pacific trade group, in an audacious bid to kick-start exports after Brexit.

英國就加入一個太平洋旗艦貿(mào)易集團舉行了非正式會談，這是為了在退歐后迅速啟動出口進行的大膽嘗試。

The proposal, being developed by Liam Fox’s Department for International Trade, would make the UK the first member of the Trans-Pacific Partnership that does not border the Pacific Ocean or the South China Sea.

利亞姆•?？怂?Liam Fox)所在的英國國際貿(mào)易部提出的這一方案，可能將使英國成為首個在太平洋和南中國海都沒有邊境線的《跨太平洋伙伴關(guān)系協(xié)定》(Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement，簡稱TPP)成員。

It would help to reinvigorate TPP, a key initiative of Barack Obama’s administration that appeared fatally wounded when Donald Trump withdrew the US last January.

這將有助于重振TPP。TPP是巴拉克•奧巴馬(Barack Obama)政府的一項重要舉措，而唐納德•特朗普(Donald Trump)在2017年1月讓美國退出TPP，似乎重創(chuàng)了該協(xié)定。

The 11 remaining members, including Australia, Japan and Mexico, agreed in November to continue with a successor deal, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

澳大利亞、日本和墨西哥等其余11個成員在2017年11月同意推進一份后續(xù)協(xié)議，即“跨太平洋伙伴關(guān)系全面和進步協(xié)議”(Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership，簡稱CPTPP)。

The UK discussions to join the distant trade group that has lost its biggest member come as Mr Fox embarks on a three-day trip to try and woo Chinese business.

在英國討論加入一個失去最大成員國美國的遙遠的貿(mào)易集團之際，?？怂归_始了為期3天、試圖吸引中國企業(yè)的訪問之旅。

Greg Hands, a UK trade minister, said there was no geographical restriction on Britain joining TPP. “Nothing is excluded in all of this,” he told the Financial Times. “With these kind of plurilateral relationships, there doesn’t have to be any geographical restriction.”

英國貿(mào)易大臣格雷格•漢茲(Greg Hands)表示，英國加入TPP不受地域限制。“在所有這一切中，沒有什么被排除在外。”他告訴英國《金融時報》，“在這種多邊關(guān)系下，并不存在任何地域限制。”

However, UK accession would almost certainly have to wait until TPP itself has been revised, and the UK has agreed its post-Brexit relationship with the EU. 然而，英國幾乎必定得等到TPP本身完成協(xié)議修訂，以及英國與歐盟(EU)就英國退歐后關(guān)系達成一致之后才能加入TPP。

Officials from TPP countries say they expect to sign the revised deal early in 2018 but are now trying to resolve some issues raised by Canada. One said it was “way too soon” to discuss UK accession before a Brexit deal.

TPP成員國的官員們表示，他們預計將在2018年初簽署修訂后的協(xié)議，但目前他們正努力解決加拿大提出的一些問題。一名官員表示，在英國達成退歐協(xié)議前討論英國加入TPP“為時太早”。

When the TPP was initially concluded in 2015, it was envisaged as a “platform for regional economic integration” rather than a group that could incorporate European members. However, some TPP countries now welcome the idea of having another G7 economy as a member. British officials have floated the idea in meetings with counterparts from Australia, New Zealand and other TPP countries in recent months.

在2015年初步達成時，TPP被設想為一個“區(qū)域經(jīng)濟一體化平臺”，而不是一個可能包含歐洲成員國的貿(mào)易集團。然而，一些TPP成員國現(xiàn)在樂見另一個七國集團(G7)經(jīng)濟體加入TPP。近幾個月，英國官員在與澳大利亞、新西蘭和其他TPP成員國的官員會面時提出了這個想法。

Labour criticised the government’s interest in TPP, saying that it should focus closer to home, in particular on Britain’s “key future trading arrangement” with the EU. “Of course [TPP] could be helpful but it is not the main event, and at the moment the government is making a hash of that,” said Barry Gardiner, the shadow trade secretary.

工黨批評了英國政府對TPP的興趣，稱英國應該把重點放在離本土更近的地方，尤其是英國與歐盟的“關(guān)鍵的未來貿(mào)易安排”。“當然，TPP可能是有幫助的，但這不是主要大事，目前政府把這個問題搞砸了，”影子貿(mào)易大臣巴里•加德納(Barry Gardiner)說。

Legally, the UK cannot sign trade deals before it leaves the EU, scheduled for March 2019. Joining TPP could be a less protracted process than negotiating individual trade deals with the member countries, but the trade department could decide to pursue bilateral deals instead. Much of its work is focused on attracting direct investment to the UK.

從法律上說，英國在預定于2019年3月完成的退歐前無法簽署貿(mào)易協(xié)定。比起與各成員國協(xié)商單獨的貿(mào)易協(xié)議，加入TPP的過程可能不那么漫長，但貿(mào)易部也可能決定謀求達成雙邊協(xié)議，其大部分工作集中于吸引對英國的直接投資。

TPP would cut tariffs on a range of goods, including agricultural products, and services. It was designed to increase American influence in Asia, but both Mr Trump and his former adversary Hillary Clinton criticised the deal for its potential impact on blue-collar jobs.

TPP將降低一系列商品的關(guān)稅，包括農(nóng)產(chǎn)品和服務。TPP的初衷是提高美國在亞洲的影響力，但特朗普和其前對手希拉里•克林頓(Hillary Clinton)都批評該協(xié)定對藍領就業(yè)崗位的可能影響。

The UK cabinet has yet to discuss Britain’s potential membership of TPP. Michael Gove, the environment secretary, said in December that Parliament would have an effective veto over any trade deal.

英國內(nèi)閣還未就英國可能加入TPP一事展開討論。英國環(huán)保大臣邁克爾•戈夫(Michael Gove)在2017年12月表示，議會對任何貿(mào)易協(xié)定都有有效的否決權(quán)。

Additional reporting by George Parker 喬治•帕克(George Parker)補充報道