THE Philippines remains keen on joining the United States-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal, as political developments unfolding in Washington may hasten the TPP’s approval and open the trade agreement to new members.
Trade Assistant Secretary for Industry Development Ceferino S. Rodolfo told reporters on Saturday that the trade office is still conducting technical consultations with TPP members in an effort to determine if it can meet commitments in the trade agreement.
The Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) Industry Development and Trade Policy group, the main trade negotiating group of the DTI, is currently in Canada and Mexico conducting technical consultations considered as vital in weighing if the Philippines can join the multilateral trade deal.
The trade official said the country is still doing due diligence, as significant developments are unfolding in the US that may hasten the approval of the TPP, after which the accession protocol for new members may be tackled.
“We are closely monitoring the developments in the US Congress on the trade promotion authority [TPA] for the US president, as that is a critical element toward the resolution of contentious issues in the TPP. Even as the TPP is now closed to new members, the Philippines would like to be in a position to make a decision as soon as the agreement is finalized and the text is made publicly available. In this context, the Philippines is doing technical consultations,” Rodolfo said.
The Philippines has so far initiated consultations with Malaysia, Australia, the US and New Zealand.
The TPP is currently composed of 11 countries, namely, the US, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Japan, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, Canada and Mexico.
Among the hot-button topics in the US now is the approval of a bill allowing US President Barack Obama to be vested with TPA, or the power to fast-track the trade accords by sending trade agreements to Congress for voting without altering the agreements already concluded by the negotiating countries.
It also prescribes that the US trade representative conduct the trade negotiations, on any trade deal, according to terms and procedures dictated by the US Congress.
The US is eyeing to speed up the approval of the trade deal before the US presidential polls goes in full swing this year.
The TPA, however, is on a contentious path to approval as Republicans and Democrats in the US Congress locked horns on specific provisions on the TPP, especially those affecting US workers.
The outcome of the measure in the US is critical as the Philippines is considered among the foremost candidates for accession to the TPP.
“We cannot enter the TPP without the countries concluding the TPP, and without finalizing the accession protocol. We are preparing to be able to make an informed decision to join the TPP,” Rodolfo said.
The trade official, however, cautioned that the Philippines still has to weigh the cost and benefits of the deal as commitments in trade deal—mostly on intellectual property and public-health measures—may face domestic opposition. He also stressed that the text has not been made publicly available and will weigh into the Philippines’s decision.
“We are not only consulting with TPP countries but with local groups with a stake in the discussion,” Rodolfo added.
The TPP countries have a combined gross domestic product of $28 trillion, or 40 percent, of world GDP, trade in goods at around $9 trillion and $2 trillion in trade-in services.