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Excerpt: "Ministers from the 12 countries negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, have been extended to Saturday in an effort to reach a final agreement aimed at creating the world's largest free-trade zone."

Melinda St. Louis speaks during a protest outside the hotel where the Trans-Pacific Partnership Ministerial Meetings are being held in Atlanta, Georgia, September 30, 2015. (photo: Reuters)
Melinda St. Louis speaks during a protest outside the hotel where the Trans-Pacific Partnership Ministerial Meetings are being held in Atlanta, Georgia, September 30, 2015. (photo: Reuters)


TPP Trade Negotiations Extended Yet Again

By teleSUR

03 October 15

 

Ministers from 12 countries agreed to extend talks amid disagreements over intellectual property and market access.

inisters from the 12 countries negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, have been extended to Saturday in an effort to reach a final agreement aimed at creating the world’s largest free-trade zone.

The meeting was originally scheduled to end on Thursday, however the talks were extended due to differences over trade tariffs, drug patents, market access and intellectual property rights.

The TPP negotiations, first launched in 2008, include nations representing 36 percent of global gross domestic product and 25 percent of all international trade.

The controversial trade deal, which includes the participation of three Latin American countries -- Mexico, Chile, and Peru, have all expressed concerns over a clause that would extend patent periods for medicines for eight years, which they argue is unacceptable.

Critics argue that the extension on monopoly drug patents would allow pharmaceutical companies to raise prices for life-saving medicines and even allow monopoly rights over surgical procedures.

The United States is currently advocating for an eight year extension of drug patents, after earlier demanding a 12 year extension.

Leading up to this week’s meetings, U.S. President Barack called the leaders of all three Latin American nations involved in the TPP negotiations to encourage them to accept the latest terms of the deal. Mexico is concerned with how the agreement might impact its automobile industry, while Chile has expressed concern over the language on medical patents. Peru is also concerned about the intellectual property aspects, but according to the White House its president called for signing the deal as soon as possible.

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