| Abstract | There is generally an implicit assumption that national differences are either of minimal significance, or that a process of "convergence" is occurring toward a western-style, liberal-democratic end-point. This paper challenges these assumptions and suggests that attempts to establish legalistic, rule-based trade regimes like the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) will be difficult, especially where they threaten existent political structures or distributional coalitions. Moreover, it is suggested that if "convergence" does occur, it is not inevitable that it will be in the direction of greater democratic reform and political freedom. |
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