KUALA LUMPUR: There is a 50:50 chance for the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations to be concluded in the US this Thursday, says International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.
"It is 50:50 with a slight edge for conclusion," he told the Business Times before leaving for Atlanta this afternoon.
The two-day ministerial round of talks opens tomorrow and many of the participating 12 countries are hopeful for the conclusion.
The last ministerial meeting in Lahaiana, Hawaii late last month ended in a deadlock.
The 12 countries in the grouping - Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Peru, the US and Vietnam - held their last ministerial meeting in Lahaiana, Hawaii, late last month but it ended in a deadlock.
"We've negotiated transitions, country specific annexes, side letters, which we hope are acceptable to other TPP parties. "
Some of the issues which Malaysia has at the negotiating table include national sovereignty, Bumiputera interests, state-owned enterprises and investor state dispute settlement.
"Whatever agreement we reach in Atlanta will not be absolute as our Parliament will have to deliberate and vote on it. "
He admitted while some participating countries were anxious to conclude the talks which have been going on for the past five years, there must be buy in and support from the Malaysian public and the Parliament.
If the talks were successfully concluded with Malaysia's interests intact, the text would be made public one month later.
With the TPP, market access into the US, Canada, Mexico and Peru will see tariffs cut for between 2000-4000 tariff lines of products including electrical and electronics products, timber and timber products, textiles, plastic and plastic products, palm oil and palm oil related products.