Singapore government on Sunday expressed its warm welcome for Japan to join the negotiations over Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), an ambitious but controversial free trade agreement with stringent standards that go much beyond just trade and investment.

"We are confident that Japan will be a valuable partner in the development of a high quality agreement to spur economic growth across the Asia-Pacific region," Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

"With Japan's inclusion, the TPP's membership has expanded to 12 countries representing nearly 40 percent of the global economy and one-third of world trade," it added.

Singapore has consistently and strongly expressed support for Japan's early participation in the TPP talks, it said.

Japan will join Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States, Vietnam, Canada and Mexico in the talks over TPP.

Singapore said the TPP is envisioned as an inclusive agreement that will lead to an eventual free trade area of the Asia-Pacific.

Critics say the negotiations are being carried out in secret and include investor-state clauses that will allow large multi- national corporations to hinder sovereign governments from passing laws or regulatory changes, such as tobacco controls to protect public health or environmental controls on mining.

The current TPP agreement between Brunei, Chile, Singapore and New Zealand came into force in 2006, but the United States, Australia, Peru, Vietnam, Malaysia, Canada and Mexico have joined the negotiations to expand the agreement. Endi

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