Abe Faces Strong Pressure From LDP, Ag Lobby On Sensitive Products

摘要

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to make an announcement by the end of next week on Japan's decision to seek participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations and is facing mounting political pressure from Japan's agriculture lobby and the policy committee of his own Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) over protecting sensitive agriculture products from tariff cuts or tariff eliminations. Japan's powerful farm lobby told Abe in a March 1 meeting that his government must ensure that rice, wheat, beef, dairy and sugar are not subject to tariff eliminations, according to an unofficial translation of a March 6 press release from the Central Union of Agricultural Cooperatives.