Japan and Australia reiterated support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, days before US president-elect Donald Trump, who has promised to scrap the trade pact, takes office, and pledged to work together to ensure the free trade deal comes into force. After talks with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took the lead on the trade pact covering 12 Pacific Rim nations that was ratified by Japan’s parliament last month. “We agreed that we should demonstrate anew to the world the importance of free trade,” Abe told reporters. “We confirmed that we would coordinate for the early entry into force of the TPP.” The two men later released a joint statement which “stressed that implementing the TPP remains an indispensable priority because of the significant economic and strategic benefits it offers”. Turnbull noted, “For both of our nations the United States remains the cornerstone of our strategic and security arrangements. “We will work closely with the incoming administration, as we have been [doing], to advance the region’s interest and our shared goals.” He had earlier told NHK television in an interview that Australia would “commend” the TPP to the new administration. US President Barack Obama championed the deal saying it would enable Washington to set the global trade agenda in the face of China’s increasing economic might. But Trump has repeatedly shot it down as bad for America and particularly for jobs, casting a dark shadow over its future.
