Chapter 474
Talks for the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement were held in Beijing. Leaders from each nation began arriving in China one after another.
North Korea's Supreme Dignitary did not come in person (he was touring construction sites and bestowing his guidance upon the people), but Vice Chairman Ri Hae-yong attended, accompanying the Supreme Dignitary's younger sister.
Chairman Zhang Pinghua, giving the keynote speech, said:
"The world is now moving in a new direction! Acts that deny the past will no longer be forgiven!"
With Japan's past historical issues being highlighted, the conference hall was practically a venue for denouncing Japan. The victimized nations gathered to voice their concerns about Japan's abolition of its Peace Constitution and its rearmament, raising their voices to demand that Japan actively address its past history.
Coincidentally, an exhibition related to the Nanjing Massacre and the Japanese military's comfort women was being held in Beijing. Japan expressed strong regret, calling them unproven facts, but China paid no mind.
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The process of consolidating past bilateral and multilateral FTAs into a comprehensive regional free trade agreement is not an easy one.
Each country has its strong sectors and its weak ones. For example, in South Korea's case, while it wants to open up its automobile, shipbuilding, and battery industries, it wants to avoid opening up its agricultural and livestock markets.