Malaysia's recent upgrade on the US. Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report has nothing to do with the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) trade agreement, US State Secretary John Kerry stressed.

"Let me just be crystal clear. I am the person who approved (the TIP report), the person who signed off on it and I have had zero conversation with anybody in the administration about the TPPA. Zero," he said in a press conference in Kuala Lumpur today.

In late July, Malaysia was upgraded from Tier 3, the worst possible ranking, to Tier 2 in this year's TIP report.

This caused many to speculate that this had been done to remove possible deal-breakers for America's ambitious 12-nation TPPA trade deal.

Kerry was adamant that the upgrade had nothing to do with the TPPA.

"Though money may be used for many things, we must never ever allow a price tag to be attached to the heart, soul, mind and freedom of a fellow human being.

"And that is the standard we need to set for all nations," he added.

Instead, he said the upgrade was based on the Malaysian government's additional efforts to combat human trafficking last year.

According to him, these efforts include passing additional legislation, consulting civil society and making amendments to the Anti-Trafficking Act.

Possible downgrade

In fact, he said Tier 2 ranking meant there is still a lot of room left for improvement.

"(A Tier 2 ranking) is not a gold seal of approval by any means.

"It is a sign that we are moving in the right direction. But it also means that there is a long way left to go," he explained.

The additional efforts by Malaysia presented themselves as an opportunity for the US to work together with the Malaysian government to further combat human trafficking in the region.

"Which is exactly the commitment (Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak) gave yesterday," he said. Kerry arrived yesterday for a two-day working visit.

He added that if it becomes clear that Malaysia is not making any genuine efforts to improve their fight against human trafficking, he has the 'distinct ability' to downgrade Malaysia's ranking next year.