A photo taken on May 23, 2022, in Tokyo shows U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attending a video call with other leaders from countries in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework.
The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework is a new vehicle for the United States to counter China economically in the Asia-Pacific region, but its narrow scope and disagreements between members will limit the effectiveness of the new initiative. During U.S. President Joe Biden’s five-day trip to Asia, the United States and 12 other countries announced on May 23 that they were “launching the process to establish” the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity. According to a joint statement, the IPEF — which Biden first unveiled during the East Asia Summit in October — will form the economic cornerstone of the United States’ strategy in the Asia-Pacific region after the former U.S. administration withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in 2017, less than one year after the United States signed the free trade pact.
