(VOVWORLD) - Ministers from 14 countries participating in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) initiative will hold a meeting in Los Angeles next week. The September 8 and 9 meeting will be the first in person ministerial meeting to discuss IPEF.
Ministers will work towards building a structure capable of ensuring a stable supply of critical products even in times of natural disasters and other contingencies. The parties also intend to strengthen cooperation in new energy technologies using hydrogen and ammonia, as well as renewable energy.
Unlike a conventional trade agreement, the IPEF is not concerned with tariff reductions and trade liberalization. Instead, with 14 countries participating in the negotiations, IPEF is focused on setting high standards in new areas such as the digital economy and supply chains for semiconductors and other strategically important materials.
IPEF currently has 14 negotiating countries including the US, Australia, India, Japan, New Zealand, Fiji, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Brunei and Vietnam. The US-led trade initiative consists of four policy pillars: trade, supply chains, infrastructure and decarbonization, and tax and anticorruption.