Trade ministers from 12 nations Monday approvedthe Trans-PacificPartnership, a secretivetradeagreementthatwillfurtherliberalizetrade in the Pacific Rim.
The agreement, which has been under negotiation since 2008, is largely unknown to the public; those parts that are known were leaked. WikiLeaks had offered up to US$100,000 dollars for the full draft of the controversial deal, but were not able to obtain it.
According to estimates, the TPP will affect 40 percent of the world economy.
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The agreement will now have to be approved by the lawmakers of each signing country.
Officials had been negotiating the last details of the deal since Wednesday last week and, although the approval was expected Sunday, it was delayed over last-minute disagreements.
The most difficult issues that damped negotiations included terms and measures regarding pharmaceutical and dairy products.
Obama on the #TPP. More: https://t.co/gqyWldsWbJ pic.twitter.com/gNWRDZIoAn
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks)
octubre 4, 2015
The deal, which excludes China and Russia, is regarded by experts as a U.S.-led effort to strengthen its position in the Pacific, were Beijing has gained ground over the past decade.
Other experts believe that the TPP will become the basis for a broader trade agreement within the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, which does include China and Russia.
Countries which are part of the TPP include Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States, and Vietnam.