TOKYO: The text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was released on Thursday, offering the first detailed look at the world's largest free trade deal, the most ambitious effort in years to rip down barriers to commerce.
New Zealand, which has signed on to the deal, put the contents of the agreement on its website, saying it would "continue to undergo legal review".
Many activists blasted the fact that the 12-nation agreement was negotiated in intense secrecy, while critics also noted that signatory governments were being forced to approve the unmodifiable deal in an all-or-nothing vote.
The accord must be signed and ratified by the respective countries and many may face uphill battles, not least in the United States as it tries to convince a sceptical Congress.
Australia's Trade and Investment Minister Andrew Robb welcomed the release of the complete text of the deal, stressing that at the end of the negotiations TPP members had agreed to release details as soon as possible.
"Today's release honours that commitment and provides the Australian public with an opportunity to examine the text and more fully understand any areas of the negotiation that are of interest to them," he said in an online statement.
Analysts and activists are sure to pore over the voluminous document, eager to sift through its 30 chapters.
Delegates from the dozen Pacific Rim nations finally managed to hammer out an agreement in the United States last month -- five years after the Washington-led talks first began.
Spanning about two-fifths of the global economy, the hard-won deal aims to set the rules for 21st century trade and investment and press non-member China to shape its behaviour in commerce, investment and business regulation to TPP standards.
Under the deal, most tariffs were to be eliminated or slashed on everything from beef, dairy products, wine, sugar, rice, horticulture and seafood through to manufactured products, resources and energy.
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