Malaysia keeps its options open on TPP

Malaysia will continue to amend its legislations, including that of labour and intellectual property rights, regardless of whether the country will be part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said the changes were not just to comply with the TPP Agreement (TPPA), but were also due to domestic review that had been ongoing to strengthen and update the legislations.

In a statement today, he said the amendments would fulfill Malaysia's international obligations such as in the International Labour Organisation and ensure that the country's legislations remained relevant in current times.

"In the event that the TPPA is going to proceed without the US participation, we will need to ensure that our interests remain protected and the benefits derived from it still outweigh the costs.

"In evaluating Malaysia's participation in the TPPA without the US, an important consideration will be the possibility of Malaysia missing out on economic opportunities should the other 10 countries decide to go ahead with the trade agreement," he said.

As of now, Mustapa said Malaysia would keep its options open and continue to be involved in the upcoming discussions.

"The engagement with our domestic stakeholders will resume as soon as there is greater clarity in the options to be considered.

"I assure all Malaysians that any decision made will be in the best interest of our country," he said.

The 11 remaining TPP signatories met today on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting in Hanoi.

This was the first meeting where all TPP ministers were involved following the withdrawal notification submitted by the US on Jan 30, 2017.

Mustapa said member countries were united in their commitment to maintain the momentum of trade liberalisation and regional integration.

"We've instructed the TPPA officials to start the process to assess all the options available for the signatories," he said.

The next meeting involving the TPPA officials is expected to be hosted by Japan in July 2017.

- BERNAMA