TPPA Will Not Be Implemented If US Does Not Ratify Pact

KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 (Bernama) -- The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TTPA) will not be implemented nor re-negotiated if the United States does not ratify the trade pact. Malaysia's International Trade and Industry Ministry Secretary-General Dr Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria said should that happen, the remaining 11 signatories to the TPPA would discuss the possibility of a different form of cooperation. "If the US does not ratify the TPPA then it will not be implemented," she told reporters after a panel discussion in conjunction with the World Bank's launch of the Malaysia Economic Monitor Report here Thursday. Earlier during the panel discussion, Rebecca said the TPPA negotiations were beneficial to the Malaysian government in addressing sensitive and critical issues. "The government is doing its best to address these concerns and make necessary changes," she said. International Trade and Industry Minister Mustapa Mohamed was reported as saying in March that the TPPA would end if Donald Trump became the next US President. The Republican candidate for the US presidential elections reportedly called the TPPA the "biggest betrayal" of Americans, claiming the trade pact would result in job losses for his countrymen due to massive work outsourcing. Malaysia and 11 other nations -- the US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, Chile, Japan and Peru signed the deal in January after years of negotiations. Meanwhile, another panelist, SME Corporation Malaysia Chief Executive Officer Datuk Dr Hafsah Hashim, said the pact would benefit small and medium enterprises largely from the automotive, electrical and electronics and textile industries. "The issue now is how to ramp up their productivity in order to benefit from the trade pact," she added. --BERNAMA