In reaction to President-elect Donald Trump’s announcement of his policy of prioritizing bilateral trade negotiations, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Koichi Hagiuda stressed at a symposium in Tokyo on Nov. 23 that “Japan will not enter into bilateral agreements easily.” He reiterated the need for the TPP agreement to enter into force at an early date and that “it is important to persist in efforts to involve the U.S. as a TPP player over time.”