Trump's Victory Does Not Mean Trans-Pacific Partnership is 'Finished'

© AFP 2023 / Nicholas Kamm Delegates show their opposition to the Trans-Pacific Parternership Agreement (TPP) during Day 1 of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 25, 2016.
Delegates show their opposition to the Trans-Pacific Parternership Agreement (TPP) during Day 1 of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 25, 2016. - Sputnik International
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The unexpected outcome of the US presidential election has left many wondering what policies the incoming administration will pursue, with the fate of the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) hanging in the balance. Australian diplomat Alan Oxley told Radio Sputnik that the jury is still out on what will happen to TPP.

"I think clearly there will be a delay. I think we should not conclude now that it is finished," he said. "I've been talking to my associates in Washington D.C. The reality on both sides is that people are very unclear on what exactly will happen." 

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The White House has considered the Trans-Pacific Partnership a signature deal that will be part of Barack Obama's legacy, if passed. TPP is an agreement aimed at deepening economic ties among Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States. It does not include China. Critics say it will siphon jobs away from the US and contribute to income inequality.

President Barack Obama reportedly hoped to have the deal approved by the US Congress before he turns over the White House to Trump. However, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has indicated that the US Congress would not vote on the agreement during the lame-duck session. 

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Oxley, Managing Director at ITS Global, a consultancy specializing in public policy in the Asia Pacific region, maintained that it still does not mean that the document will not eventually be ratified.

"Some have suggested to me that by their own calculations if Washington were to proceed regardless of whether or not there was a change in the administration it still might take two years to be finalized through the US Congress. The reality is that no one can tell which way it will go."

US president-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly lambasted TPP and other international trade deals as damaging for the US economy. TPP, he said, is a "disaster" pushed through by special interests and a "a continuing rape of our country."

"Trump has been forthright in saying he is not happy with this particular arrangement," Oxley said. "The reality is that no one knows precisely what's going to happen. … Certainly, it won't be done quickly. That's one thing we can be quite clear about."

Oxley further said that the next US administration could well backtrack on some of the proposed policy measures that Trump had mentioned during the election season.  

"Many of the things that Trump's administration has claimed it would do, would be quite difficult to achieve," he said. "I think some of the rhetoric during the campaign was not practical. … I doubt there will be a wholesale overturning of established practices."

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