US, Brunei Committed to TPP Deal, Boosting Trade

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The United States and Brunei are committed to finalizing the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade deal as well as to promoting international trade, US State Department deputy spokesperson Mark Toner said in a release on Monday after the meeting between Secretary of State John Kerry and Brunei Foreign Minister II Pehin Lim Jock Seng.

“The two ministers reaffirmed their support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership and committed to find ways to advance trade capacity, support Brunei’s entrepreneurs, and encourage further innovation in Brunei,” Toner said.

Kerry and Lim Jock Seng also discussed the situation in the South China Sea and Brunei’s plans to implement the Sharia Penal Code.

On October 5, 12 countries of the Pacific Rim region reached an agreement on the wording and subject matter of the TPP trade deal, intended to deregulate trade among the signatories which together make up some 40 percent of the world economy. The deal has yet to be ratified by the signatory countries.

The parties to the TPP agreement are the United States, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam.