Summary of the Trans-Pacific Partnership
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was a proposed trade agreement between 12 Pacific Rim economies: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and the United States. It was signed in 2016 but not ratified as a result of significant domestic political opposition. After taking office, President Trump formally withdrew the United States from TPP in 2017, ensuring its termination.
The remaining countries negotiated a new trade agreement called the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which incorporated most of the TPP's provisions and entered into force in 2018.
The TPP aimed to lower both non-tariff and tariff barriers to trade and establish an investor-state dispute settlement mechanism. The U.S. International Trade Commission, Peterson Institute for International Economics, World Bank, and Office of the Chief Economist at Global Affairs Canada stated that the final agreement, if ratified, would have led to net positive economic outcomes for all signatories.
Due to significant secrecy during negotiations, the TPP attracted criticism from various groups. Some expressed concern about its potential impacts on currency manipulation, indigenous rights, and industry influence. Others argued that it would disproportionately benefit corporations at the expense of workers.
Despite these criticisms, the TPP was seen as a tool to reduce the signatories' dependence on Chinese trade and bring them closer to the United States. Withdrawal of the United States from the agreement strengthened China's alternative model of regional trade cooperation.