Backing their diplomats and trade chiefs, the leaders of the 12 states participating in the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreed Saturday to step up efforts to implement the free trade agreement.
In a meeting in Lima, the leaders affirmed their intention to advance ratification and other secretive domestic procedures so the U.S.-led TPP can enter into force, a senior Japanese official said.
Although it is unclear whether the free trade pact will survive the new administration being put together by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, the leaders did not discuss the possibility of activating it without the United States, the official said.