USTR highlights pending FTAs, Doha Round, engagement with Asia
May 21, 2009
World Trade\Interactive
In a speech to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce earlier this week, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk indicated that the Obama administration is moving forward on a number of trade policy efforts of interest to the business community. He emphasized the importance of trade to the nation’s economic well-being and called on participants on both sides of the trade policy debate to work together to generate new opportunities.
Pending FTAs. Kirk pointed out that trade “can be a major boon to American companies and workers, and to the country as a whole,” and that opening additional markets is one of the best ways to help U.S. businesses grow. This, he said, is the reason the Obama administration is working to implement pending free trade agreements as well as seeking new opportunities to open significant markets in the future.
• Panama – “It’s no secret that we’ve been working very hard with the Panamanian government in recent weeks” to resolve outstanding labor and international tax issues so that the U.S.-Panama FTA can be sent to Congress for consideration. Kirk emphasized that many of Panama’s products already enjoy duty-free access to the U.S. market and that the FTA will give U.S. farmers, ranchers, manufacturers, producers and workers reciprocal access to consumers in Panama. The Senate Finance Committee was scheduled to hold a hearing on the Panama FTA May 21.
• Colombia – A thorough review of the Colombia FTA and efforts to find a way forward, as directed by President Obama, are “actively in progress.”
• Korea – Kirk met with Korean officials recently and “had a very candid and productive discussion about the domestic political concerns that must be addressed in both our countries so that we can proceed” with legislation to implement the U.S.-Korea FTA.
Doha Round. Kirk said the Obama administration’s review of the Doha Round has included “a close look at what’s been achieved, a distillation of the outstanding issues, and ongoing discussions with our trading partners to gain their perspective as well.” He indicated that this administration, like the one before it, defines success in the Doha Round negotiations as “a balanced and ambitious agreement with meaningful market access gains for all involved.” He emphasized that the U.S. does not intend to “discard the hard work that’s been done” over the eight years of negotiation and instead wants to “build on the progress that we’ve made,” but he also highlighted the need to “think about new paths to address remaining issues.” He also repeated the call for more leadership from advanced developing countries such as China, India, Brazil and South Africa but added that “all 153 WTO members should be willing to consider adjustments to help put the negotiations on a more direct path to success.”
Asia. Kirk stated that more effective engagement with Asia will be a key component of the Obama administration’s outlook on trade but suggested that the bulk of this effort will await the conclusion of the pending FTAs and the Doha Round. He noted that the value of U.S. trade with Asia has tripled over the past 15 years and said one of his goals is to “take a robust look at U.S. trade policy” toward this region. A Reuters article cited Kirk as saying that “at a minimum” the U.S. will “pick up” the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which could eventually result in a free trade area among the U.S., Chile, New Zealand, Singapore, Brunei, Australia, Peru and Vietnam, but according to Inside US Trade no formal administration decision to re-engage in the TPP talks has yet been made.
Trade Policy. Initiatives like those outlined above offer substantial potential benefits to U.S. businesses and workers, but Kirk warned that “it won’t matter how hard we try to craft a new international trade agenda if squabbles here at home just bog it down.” He called on “both sides of the trade debate in this country” to “stop the name-calling that keeps us divided on trade,” stating that “reflexive labeling of foes as either protectionists or anti-worker does little to foster the discussion of genuine concerns that need to be considered and addressed if we are to move forward successfully.” Instead, he said, “it’s time to lay down our arms, come out of our bunkers, and start supporting important initiatives on their merits, not reject them for tradition’s sake.”
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