Japanese PM Shinzo Abe and Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull spoke of their desire to see the TPP ratified, despite opposition from Trump. Abe's visit comes amid heightened regional tension in the South China Sea and fears US President-elect Donald Trump will push ahead with his pledge to kill the trade agreement once he takes office on January 20. Abe said the increasingly uncertain geopolitical landscape made the relationship between Japan and Australia more important than ever. China's recent naval exercises in the South China Sea and the building of islands there, with military assets, have unnerved its neighbours and risk provoking a reaction from the United States. Trump's nominee for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, has said China should be denied access to islands it has built in the South China Sea.

Source: Otago Daily Times January 15, 2017 01:51 UTC