nize the need to participate in the worldwide economic markets, they prefer to participate on their own terms. They tend to view completely open markets as part of the same Western culture which emphasizes liberal philosophies centered on the individual. The result of this thinking can be a sort of "knee-jerk" reaction on the part of Asian governments when the subject of "open markets" is raised (Gill and Henley, 1997, pp. 8-9). The challenge for the United States is measuring how much this reaction will affect the interest of creating and maintaining open markets in the Asia-Pacific region.
(2) Relationships between Asian-Pacific Countries
Another internal factor affecting open markets in the region is the relationship between the various Asian-Pacific countries. In particular, the relationship between China and Japan has the potential for dramatically affecting this interest. Japan's economy is currently the second largest in the world (after that of t
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