U.S. President Barack Obama heads to Asia on Tuesday with an ace in his hand that wasn't there last time he visited the continent — a long-awaited Pacific trade pact that's just off the printer.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership, years in the making, is a centerpiece of Obama's self-proclaimed economic and security pivot to the region. Adding to the buoyancy for his trip as his presidency nears its end is a better-than-expected U.S. jobs report this month and an overwhelming election win for Myanmar's pro-democracy party led by Aung San Suu Kyi.
The 12-nation TPP may give Obama leverage against China over issues such as its land reclamation in the contested South China Sea and cyberattacks linked to China on U.S. corporate and government sites. While the TPP has a long road to be enacted and requires legislative approval in all nations, it goes beyond normal trade deals to include issues like intellectual property and state-owned enterprises.