Hillary Clinton has broken ranks with Barack Obama and criticised the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, saying it will not do enough to create American jobs or “advance our national security”.
The former US Secretary of State, who is a leading contender for the Democratic nomination for President, said she was “not in favour” of the deal currently being discussed by 12 countries on the Pacific Rim, including the US and Japan, but not China.
TPP, as it is known, would potentially create a free trade area covering 40 per cent of the world’s total trade.
It is seen in the US as a counter-part to the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership trade deal (TTIP), currently being negotiated with the European Union.
In an interview with PBS, Ms Clinton said that “as of today, I am not in favour of what I have learned about” the deal.
“I have said from the very beginning that we had to have a trade agreement that would create good American jobs, raise wages and advance our national security and I still believe that is the high bar we have to meet. I don't believe it's going to meet the high bar I have set,” she said.
Ms Clinton has previously praised the TPP deal, saying in 2012 that it set “the gold standard in trade agreements to open free, transparent, fair trade, the kind of environment that has the rule of law and a level playing field”.
TTIP has proved controversial in Europe, where some trade unionists fear it could undermine workers’ rights and conditions. There have also been claims it could lead to the privatisation of the NHS, the watering down of strict EU standards on food safety and the environment, and allow companies to sue democratically elected governments if they pass policies which hit their profits.
