Text of TPP released

The text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a free-trade agreement reached by 12 countries in the Pacific Rim, was made public on Thursday morning after a long wait.

In a letter posted on the department's website, US Trade Representative Michael Froman touted TPP's benefits to Americans.

He said "we'll continue to work closely with Congress and all stakeholders to ensure this agreement can begin delivering on its promise as soon as possible".

The TPP has drawn sharp criticism for its secrecy, and most staunch opponents of the agreement come from President Barack Obama's Democratic Party and supporters, such as Democratic lawmakers and trade unions.

That is believed to be a reason why Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton, who supported TPP as secretary of state, voiced opposition.

The White House is expected to notify Congress on Thursday that Obama intends to sign the deal. There will be a 90-day period of deliberation before lawmakers vote yes or no.

Most supporters for TPP are Republican lawmakers, a party that Obama recently described as "grumpy cat".

The 12 countries include the United States, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

The 12 nations, which account for nearly 40 percent of the global economy, reached an agreement on TPP on Oct 5 after seven years of negotiations. China was not included in the TPP talks.

David Dollar, a senior fellow at the John L. Thornton China Center of the Brookings Institution, said the TPP document reveals a high-standard agreement that addresses issues such as intellectual property rights protection and investment.

"It will be controversial in the US, but I predict Congress will pass it," said Dollar, a US Treasury Department economic and financial emissary to China from 2009 to 2013.

He said China should join because it would be a way to lock in reforms that China has talked about for years, such as opening the service sectors to competition.

In a statement released on Thursday, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a global non-profit environmental organization, said the TPP agreement reveals some fundamental problems in the proposed international trade agreement.

"This trade agreement would allow foreign corporations to challenge our health, safety and environmental protections in a foreign tribunal outside our legal system, and it would weaken those bedrock safeguards in the United States," said Jake Schmidt, NRDC's international program director.

"While there are some positive conservation measures, the agreement's substantial shortcomings should lead Congress to reject it," Schmidt said.

China's views about the TPP have evolved over the years, with many having regarded it a few years ago as a US conspiracy to contain a rising China to a more open-minded position with expressions of interest in the trade agreement.

chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com