WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump has taken a big U turn and said theUnited States would only join the Trans Pacific Partnership, amultinational trade deal his administration walked away from last year, ifit offered “substantially better” terms than those provided under previousnegotiations.

His comments, made on Twitter late Thursday, came only hours after he hadunexpectedly indicated the United States might rejoin the landmark pact,and amid heightened volatility in financial markets as Washington lockedhorns with China in a bitter trade dispute.

Trump had told Republican senators earlier in the day that he had askedUnited States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and White Houseeconomic adviser Larry Kudlow to re-open negotiations.

In his Twitter post, which came during Asian trading hours, Trump said theUnited States would “only join TPP if the deal were substantially betterthan the deal offered to Pres. Obama.

We already have BILATERAL deals with six of the eleven nations in TPP, andare working to make a deal with the biggest of those nations, Japan, whohas hit us hard on trade for years!”Policymakers in the Asia-Pacific regionon Friday responded to the possibility of the U.S. rejoining the trade dealwith scepticism.

“If it’s true, I would welcome it,” Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso toldreporters after a cabinet meeting on Friday and before Trump’s tweet. Asoadded that the facts needed to be verified.

Trump “is a person who could change temperamentally, so he may saysomething different the next day”, Aso said. Australian Prime MinisterMalcolm Turnbull, commenting after Trump’s tweet, said it would be “great”to have the U.S. back in the pact though doubted it would happen.