This paper examines the legal status of a treaty after the termination of diplomatic relations between two countries by using Taiwan-Panama FTA as a case study. This paper argues that the severance of diplomatic relations does not affect the legal relations of Taiwan-related FTAs. This paper...

This commentary focuses on Article 8.30 CETA, which is entitled ‘Ethics’ and sets ethical rules for the Members of the CETA Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal. The European Commission presents this precept in a succinct paragraph, highlighting the key issues addressed and the main novelties...

Given the current state of multilateral trade negotiations, it appears that preferential trade agreements (PTAs) will serve as the main vehicle for increased liberalization in the short term. The question arises, whether the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) should and could include...

Only days after his inauguration as U.S. President, Donald J. Trump withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a “mega” regional free trade agreement that would have established the world's largest free trade zone. Although President Trump announced that the...

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) has been universally acknowledged as the major regional economic cooperation organization for the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment (TILF) in the Asia-Pacific region. However, APEC's role as leader in the Asia-Pacific region is...

This article provides a comprehensive overview of the treatment of legal services in the United States’ international trade agreements. Although many individuals are now familiar with the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), far fewer realize that legal services are included in at...

In this chapter, I review the literature on governments’ motivations for negotiating and joining international trade agreements. I discuss both normative explanations for trade agreements and explanations based on political-economy concerns. Most of the chapter focuses on the purpose of...

In 2015, the Heads of State and Government of COMESA, the EAC and SADC agreed to establish the Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) extending from Cape to Cairo, encompassing all twenty-six members of the three groupings. While the TFTA negotiations are ongoing, it is necessary that member states...

In the context of a current global economic crisis and an unfinished World Trade Organization (WTO) Doha Round, multilateralism is at its weakest point. The proliferation of bilateral and regional trade agreements seems to be the natural consequence of failed multilateralism. In this difficult...