Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe delivered a speech to Congress Wednesday pressing lawmakers to support the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. Abe said the implications of the TPP go far beyond the economy.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe: “Furthermore, the TPP goes far beyond just economic benefit. It is also about our security. Long-term, its strategic value is awesome.”

The TPP would encompass 40 percent of the global economy. It has faced a tidal wave of opposition from groups across the political spectrum who say it would undermine environmental and health regulations, hurt U.S. workers and grant special rights to corporations. Lawmakers are considering whether to grant Obama fast-track authority to push the deal through Congress without any amendments allowed.