Asia watching fate of Nafta, says Malaysia

One of the reasons we decided to be part of the TPP was the potential access to the American market

Mustapa Mohamed, Malaysian Trade Minister

hanoi — Asian governments are watching with some anxiety the fate of the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) as the Trump administration kicks off a review of the pact.

“All of us are keen to know whether America is committed to have an open, liberal trading environment,” Malaysian Trade Minister Mustapa Mohamed said on the sidelines of the Apec ministerial meeting in Hanoi.

Mustapa said ministers were “anxious to hear” from new US Trade Representative, Robert Lighthizer. “In this first meeting the first thing is to get some clarity on protectionism — this America First and how it’s going to affect us in this part of the world,” he said.

Mustapa said Malaysia was less keen to continue, but added he would like some clarity on the US position on the pact. The US is Malaysia’s third-largest trading partner and there is no direct trade deal between the countries.

“TPP countries are still keen on TPP, of course the level of keenness differs between countries,” he said. “Some countries are still very gung-ho.”

“One of the reasons we decided to be part of the TPP was the potential access to the American market and if that does not happen one of the major motivations to be part of the TPP will be removed.” — Bloomberg