News Analysis Beijing is pushing hard for the quick execution of its RCEP free trade deal that will bind U.S. allies that signed up—including Japan, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, and the Philippines—ever closer to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) is pushing for the quick implementation of Beijing’s “binding” free trade deal, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP), which will enter into force for ratifying countries on Jan. 1, 2022. Fifteen countries signed the pact in 2020. According to a MOFCOM statement published on Nov. 6, 10 countries, including close U.S. allies Japan, Australia, and New Zealand, ratified the agreement this month, ensuring that it would go into force. China, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam also ratified the agreement. South Korea and the Philippines are two other close U.S. allies that signed the RCEP agreement, though they have not ratified it yet. …