TPP talks to continue in APEC Summit

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement talks are set to continue as leaders of its 11 member nations will meet here on Friday on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit

"I would say we are in the final stage, which is always difficult, but at least Chile has been working hard, with flexibility, to try to reach a result," Chile's Deputy Minister of Commerce Paulina Nazal told Efe news.

According to Mexico's Secretary of Foreign Affairs Luis Videgaray, the talks are aimed at amending the existing agreement after US President Donald Trump pulled out from the free trade agreement in January.

There have been speculations about a TPP announcement since the beginning of the APEC summit on Monday.

Late Thursday, Japan's Economy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said at a press conference that an agreement in principle had been reached to revive the treaty, although Canada's Commerce Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne, denied it later in a tweet saying "despite reports, there is no agreement in principle on TPP".

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Thursday night that the negotiations have reached a crucial point, although the outcome was still uncertain.

The TPP comprising Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam was signed in 2016. It needed to be ratified by countries representing 85 per cent of the bloc's GDP to come into effect.

Its future became uncertain when Trump, to fulfil his election promise, pulled out the US which represents 60 per cent of the bloc's GDP.

--IANS

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