Is the Death of the TPP Good News for Brazil? Mega-Regional Agreements and the Quest for Development 'Policy Space'

摘要

Beyond the controversy between supporters and critics of the Trans-pacific Partnership (TPP), the agreement has generated broad scholarly interest as the first twenty-first century 'mega-regional' accord ever concluded. This article seeks to contribute to the debate, analysing the potential regulatory impact of a TPP-like agreement on Brazil and developing countries in general, arguing that third-generation broad economic partnerships may be incompatible with the foreign policy stance of keeping 'policy space' for development. The article compares the TPP legal text with previous free trade agreements (FTAs), and analyses provisions in various TPP chapters that contrast with Brazil's traditional stance in key issues relating to market access, services, investments, intellectual property, electronic commerce and regulatory convergence. Evidence from this exercise outlined that Brazil has not acceded to various international agreements which participation is required under the TPP, and Brazil still lacks modern domestic regulations in crucial areas that would be demanded in a third generation agreement. The recent withdrawal of the United States from the TPP and the uncertainties surrounding trade global governance suggests that Brazil has a window of opportunity to revamp its domestic institutions and decision-making process to become a 'rule maker' instead of 'rule-taker' in international trade.