October 6, 2015

If ratified by the countries party to it, the Trans-Pacific Trade Agreement will cover goods as diverse as automobiles, drugs, and clothing. © Junko Kimura, Getty Images

On Monday, October 5, trade ministers from the United States, Australia, Japan, and nine other Pacific Rim nations reached a deal on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a sweeping trade liberalization pact that will cut trade barriers and set common standards. The deal paves the way for individual governments’ approvals—something much easier said than done, especially in the often-dysfunctional U.S. Congress. The other TPP countries are Brunei, Canada, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam.

If the TPP is approved, it will be the largest regional trade accord in history, representing two-fifths of the global economy. The major points of the TPP include the reduction of tariffs and import restrictions, protections for copyrights and other intellectual property, the enforcement of common labor and environmental rules, and the creation of a forum for international legal challenges.

The TPP is much more than a trade deal, as it creates a common and fair platform on which all member economies must agree to operate. Labor practices, for example—including working hours, wages, work environment, and pollution—would have to meet the same standards in each country. The deal also allows such American exports as agricultural products, cars and trucks, consumer goods, information technology, and machinery to enter countries that currently limit or ban such imports to protect their own industries. Crucially, the TPP also creates an alternative to the current Asia-Pacific economy dominated by China—an economy lacking in the fundamental protections and requirements of the TPP.

In June, the U.S. Senate gave U.S. President Barack Obama “fast-track” authority to negotiate the TPP, meaning the Congressional approval vote will be free of amendments or filibuster. Securing enough votes for approval, however, will require some wheeling and dealing. Many Democrats fear the deal’s impact on trade unions, as well as its Wall Street- and corporate-friendly details. Many Republicans oppose the deal because they fear the loss of American jobs and simply because it was Obama’s initiative. A vote on the TPP will most likely not occur until 2016—an election year, so anything can happen.

Back in time articles

• International trade (2014), (2013), (2012)

June 27, 2014

Three ex-Soviet states—Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine—signed a trade-pact agreement in Brussels today with the European Union (EU). The pact lifts trade tariffs between the three nations and the EU and also offers EU aid with badly needed economic reforms to the former Soviet nations.

The official flag of the European Union, or EU (World Book illustration).

It was this trade pact that led to Ukraine’s current crisis with Russia. Last November, under great pressure from Russia and Russian president Vladimir Putin, Ukraine’s former president Viktor Yanukovych refused to sign the EU trade pact that would have brought Ukraine closer to Europe’s sphere of influence, instead choosing closer economic ties with Russia. His refusal created a political crisis, as thousands of Ukrainians staged protests in the streets of Ukraine’s capital, Kiev. These street protests continued into 2014; when police and protestors clashed in February 2014, more than 100 protestors were killed, and Ukraine’s parliament voted to oust Yanukovych. An interim government was formed. Days later, Russia, claiming it was protecting Russian-speaking Ukrainians, began its occupation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea. Russia also began aiding pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine’s interim government held elections, and billionaire Petro Poroshenko was elected president of Ukraine on May 25. On June 20, Poroshenko declared a ceasefire in eastern Ukraine. Due to expire today, diplomats were working to extend the shaky ceasefire between Ukrainian troops and separatists through Monday, June 30.

Upon signing the trade pact, President Poroshenko exclaimed “What a great day! It is a historic day, the most important day since independence.” Russia’s reaction to Ukraine’s pact with the EU was immediate. Russia threatened Ukraine with extreme trade restrictions. A senior adviser to President Putin referred to President Poroshenko as a “Nazi” and called the signing “illegitimate.” International affairs experts suggested that President Putin’s displeasure with the new agreement has more to do with the psychological blow of having three former states shift away from Russian influence. The trade pact itself will take some time to even begin to change the economic relationships between Russia and its one-time satellites.

Additional World Book articles:

• Russia in the Post-Soviet World (a Special Report)
• Ukraine
• Ukraine (Back in Time 2013)

March 21, 2014

Leaders of the European Union (EU) and Ukraine signed an agreement today designed to give the Ukraine’s interim leadership under Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk economic and political support. European Union President Herman Van Rompuy stated that the accord “recognizes the aspirations of the people of Ukraine to live in a country governed by values, by democracy and the rule of law.” Calling it a “historic day,” Prime Minister Yatsenyuk declared, “We want to be a part of the big European family and this is the first tremendous step in order to achieve for Ukraine its ultimate goal, as a full-fledged member.” Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych’s abandonment of an EU trade agreement in November to move closer to Russia triggered massive protests that brought down his government and ultimately resulted in Russia’s seizure of Crimea.

Both Yatsenyuk and Rompuy noted that “the best way to contain Russia is to impose real economic leverage.” To that end, EU leaders have scheduled meetings to forge ways to reduce their energy dependence on Russia. Natural gas and oil from Russia accounted for at least 33 percent of total EU imports in 2010.

International affairs experts point out that natural gas and oil profits fuel Russia’s economy and, thus, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s power on the world stage. They describe today’s agreement as a show of support following the Crimean annexation earlier this week.

Yesterday, President Barack Obama of the United States announced further sanctions against prominent Russians, many of whom are close associates of President Putin. President Obama also revealed that he has signed an executive order that allows the United States “to impose sanctions on key sectors of the Russian economy.” He also urged Congress to pass an aid package to support the Ukraine’s tottering economy.

In Moscow, President Putin signed legislation into law formally absorbing Crimea into Russia. Russia sent troops into Crimea in late February, seizing control from Ukraine on the pretext that the region’s Russian-speaking majority needed protection from the next government in Kiev.

For additional information on the Ukrainian revolution, search Ukraine articles under Archived Stories.

Additional World Book article:

• Russia in the Post-Soviet World (a special report)

December 18, 2013

The Russian government announced yesterday that the state-owned Gazprom energy company has dropped the price of natural gas supplied to Ukraine from more than $400 per 1,000 cubic meters to $268.50. Russian President Vladimir Putin also agreed yesterday to purchase $15 billion in Ukrainian government bonds. In Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov told his Cabinet ministers that the aid from Russia is saving Ukraine from “bankruptcy and social collapse” and that the lower gas prices will allow for “a revival of economic growth.”

The massive antigovernment protests that have disrupted Kiev and other Ukrainian cities for weeks continued, however. The leaders of the opposition movement are demanding to know what Ukraine offered Russia in return for the aid. Speaking yesterday in Kiev’s Independence Square, opposition party leader Vitali Klitschko told protesters that President Viktor Yanukovych was betraying Ukraine’s independence by joining with Russia.

(World Book map; map data © MapQuest.com, Inc.)

The protests in Kiev began in late November with demonstrators blockading government buildings and erecting barricades in a campaign to bring down the Yanukovych government. The unrest was triggered by Yanukovych’s refusal to sign sweeping political and free trade accords that would have moved Ukraine closer to the European Union (EU). Experts on the situation in Ukraine note that to most Ukrainians, the West represents freedom, democracy, and prosperity. International affairs experts suggest that Yanukovych feared that moving Ukraine closer to the EU could trigger painful reprisals from Russia, Ukraine’s largest trading partner. During a natural gas price dispute in 2009, Putin cut off the flow of natural gas to Ukraine, leaving the country without heat during a particularly cold January.

Russia has dominated Ukraine on and off  for more than 200 years. Because of its fertile soil, Ukraine was once described as Russia’s breadbasket.

Additional World Book articles:

• Kuchma, Leonid Danylovich
• Viktor Yushchenko
• Ukraine 2004 (a Back in Time article)
• Ukraine 2005 (a Back in Time article)

December 11, 2013

Riot police have abandoned their latest attempt to dislodge antigovernment demonstrators from their strongholds, including Independence Square in Kiev, the Ukrainian capital. Their withdrawal came only after battling with protesters for several hours. Wearing hard hats, the protesters had locked arms to form a human chain around the square to keep the police out. In the occupied city hall, demonstrators used fire hoses to shoot icy water at police to keep them at bay.

The antigovernment protests in Kiev began in late November with demonstrators blockading government buildings and erecting barricades on Independence Square in a campaign to bring down the government of President Viktor Yanukovych. The unrest was triggered by President Yanukovych’s refusal to sign sweeping political and free trade accords that would have moved Ukraine closer to the European Union (EU). Experts on the situation in Ukraine note that to most Ukrainians, the West represents freedom, democracy, and prosperity.

Ukrainians protest in Kiev's Independence Square in 2004. Their demonstrations led to the Orange Revolution, an important step toward democracy. However, subsequent governments have failed to live up to the promise of the revolution. (AP/Wide World)

Over the last two weeks, the protests have grown ever larger. Hundreds of thousands of people turned out on Sunday, December 8. At the height of that demonstration, protesters pulled down a giant statue of Lenin, underscoring their rage at Russia over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s role in convincing Yanukovych to back off from the EU agreements. International affairs experts suggest that Yanukovych fears that moving Ukraine closer to the EU could trigger painful reprisals from Russia, Ukraine’s largest trading partner. During a natural gas price dispute in 2009, Putin cut off the flow of natural gas to Ukraine, leaving the country without heat during a particularly cold January.

Yanukovych stoked the unrest even further last week by stopping on his way home from an official trip to Beijing to meet with Putin at the Russian resort city of Sochi. Putin is pressing Yanukovych to bring Ukraine into a customs union with Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. Russia has dominated Ukraine on and off  for more than 200 years. Because of its fertile soil, Ukraine was once described as Russia’s breadbasket.

Additional World Book articles:

• Kuchma, Leonid Danylovich
• Viktor Yushchenko
• Ukraine 2004 (a Back in Time article)
• Ukraine 2005 (a Back in Time article)