[ad_1]
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe said Britain would welcome the peaceful free trade pact "with open arms" after its departure from the European Union. His comments followed the warning from Japanese automakers that a Brexit without a deal could affect production and force them to rethink their investments.
In an interview with the Financial Times in Tokyo, Abe said that Britain would lose its role as a gateway to Europe after Brexit, but would remain "endowed with a global force" to conclude agreements free trade with countries outside the EU.
Abe, one of the leading architects of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), is trying to strengthen the agreement reached with eleven countries after Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement the day of his entry in function, calling it a "potential catastrophe for our country". ".
However, the UK's entry into the TPP would depend on its withdrawal from the EU Customs Union, which would allow it to set its own tariffs.
Japan, Singapore and Mexico have ratified the agreement, while Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru and Vietnam have all signed.
The United Kingdom would be the first member of the agreement to have no borders on the Pacific Ocean or the South China Sea, although the bloc does not include China or South Korea. South.
Abe urged London and Brussels to avoid a "messy" deal that would affect Japanese companies with investments in the UK.
"I hope both parties will be able to bring their wisdom and at least avoid a" messy Brexit, "Abe said, adding that Japanese companies would need time to adapt after the departure of Great Britain. Brittany on March 29th.
"I sincerely hope that the negative impact of Brexit on the global economy, including on Japanese companies, will be minimized."
Britain would have much to lose from a partial withdrawal, of Japanese companies that felt that the terms of the Brexit agreement were detrimental to their long-term interests.
Companies such as Nissan and Hitachi have invested more than £ 40 billion in the UK since the 1980s. More than 1,000 Japanese companies together employ about 140,000 people in Britain in the manufacturing, pharmaceutical and financial services.
In its most candid comments on the Brexit to date, Nissan said last week that the UK manufacturing industry would have "serious consequences" if it left the EU without agreement.
"Today, we are among the companies that have significant investments in the UK and are still waiting for clarification on the future of UK-EU trade relations. ", said Nissan.
The company, which employs 7,000 people in its Sunderland plant, added: "We urge British and European negotiators to work together to create a well-rounded Brexit, which will continue to encourage mutually beneficial trade."
Earlier, Toyota had warned that a Brexit without an agreement would temporarily stop production at its Burnaston plant in Derbyshire, which employs 2,500 people and produced nearly 150,000 cars last year, of which 90% is for export to the EU.
"My view is that if Britain withdrew from the EU in late March, our factory production would stop," BBC chief Marvin Cooke told the BBC. Burnaston plant.
Despite the announcement of a £ 240 million investment in Burnaston last year, Toyota said that a Brexit without agreement would have a negative impact on the future of the factory.
"The UK market itself is not big enough to justify a plant of this size," said Johan van Zyl, President and CEO of Toyota Motor Europe. "If we can not sell in the European market, it will have an impact on the future of our factory."
Major Japanese banks have already announced their intention to reduce their presence in London. They are worried about the potential loss of the "European passport", which allows London-based banks to operate freely on the continent's financial markets.
Abe and Keidanren, the largest economic lobby in Japan, have expressed fears that a tough Brexit could be a "very negative" for Japanese companies in the UK.
In an exceptionally frank statement issued at the 2016 G20 summit in Beijing, Japan drew up a list of Brexit claims including the negotiation between Theresa May and the United Kingdom in the Customs Union and the EU's Single Market. EU, and guaranteeing the free movement of the United Kingdom and the rest of the continent.
Japan's ambassador to Britain, Koji Tsuruoka, also painted a bleak picture of Japan's commitment to the British economy if the Brexit deal jeopardized profits.
"There is no profitability to continue operations in the UK – not just in Japan – no private company can continue its business … it's as simple as that" he told the British ministers this year.
