Valdai Club

The center of gravity in trade and investment flows is increasingly shifting toward Asia against the backdrop of adjustments or even setbacks in integration processes in Europe and America, as well as new drivers of integration and openness in East Asia. Trade pacts in East Asia are gaining in scale and momentum, as evidenced by the emergence of major regional blocks such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, also known as TPP-11, as well as talks on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The creation of transcontinental links of this kind can also be seen in the global south with China and India proactive in exploring opportunities for joining regional and interstate integration processes in South America and Africa. The main question is the nature of the development vector for regional integration in the Pacific and of the outlines for new economic integration formats against the backdrop of China and other emerging economies becoming increasingly active in building their own trade and economic alliances.