Saturday, 21/01/2017 14:35 (GMT+7)
The cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ratified the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) on January 20th, one month after the country’s parliament passed the agreement and related laws.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (Photo: VNA)
The moves mean that Japan has fully completed necessary domestic procedures for the ratification of the trade deal.
Speaking at a TPP-related meeting, Minister in charge of the pact Nobuteru Oshihara said that Tokyo has notified New Zealand, where the pact is entrusted, that Japan had completed its domestic procedures.
He affirmed that Japan will be determined to build a common foundation to underpin the agreement.
TPP was signed by 12 member countries in February 2015 after five years of negotiation. However, the free trade deal appears unlikely to be enforced as US President-elect Donald Trump pledged to pull the US out of TPP as he takes office.
However, many member countries affirmed to continue pursuing the deal. At the recent 24th APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in Lima of Peru, they also discussed the promotion of a TPP without the US.
TPP groups Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam.
Once effective, it will help remove thousands of tariff barriers and better ensure the rights of labourers in member countries. According to economics, TPP accounts for 40 percent of global economy and adds nearly USD300 billion to the world’s GD annually./.
CPV/VNA