SIIA Chairman Simon Tay was quoted in an article by Tan Hui Yee for The Straits Times on US President Barack Obama’s comments regarding the TPP during his visit to Laos for the East Asia Summit.
US President Barack Obama has said his country’s commitment to the Asia-Pacific region will endure “for the long term”, as he reiterated a vow to push Congress to pass the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade pact before he leaves office.
The United States’ interests in the Asia-Pacific are “not a passing fad”, Mr Obama said yesterday in the Laotian capital of Vientiane on his last trip to Asia as president. “It reflects fundamental national interests.”
He acknowledged that a failure to follow through on the 12-nation TPP deal would call into question the US “rebalance” towards Asia.
Singapore Institute of International Affairs head Simon Tay said the TPP “is every bit as significant as military engagement and more enduring”, adding: “It causes the Chinese more concern than anything else.”
Full Article: US committed to Asia-Pacific for long term: Obama [The Straits Times, 7 Sep 2016]
Image Credit: Map of TPP, Office of the United States Trade Representative
