WASHINGTON – The Bush Administration today
delivered to Congress the 2006 Trade
Policy Agenda and the 2005 Annual Report of the President of the
United
States on the Trade Agreements
Program. The 2006 report details the many
benefits of trade for U.S. businesses, farmers and ranchers, service providers
and consumers, reviews the
Administration’s accomplishments of 2005 and lays out its ambitious agenda for
2006.
Looking
Forward
In the
report, U.S. Trade Representative Portman laid out an ambitious agenda and
wrote, “In 2006, the Administration is committed to creating new momentum for a
bipartisan consensus to open markets and knock down barriers to trade around the
world. Working in partnership with
Congress, we will be promoting an aggressive and proactive
agenda.”
One of
the top priorities is conclusion of the Doha Development Round by the end of the
year.
“The potential benefits from the
successful Doha Round for the United States and its trading partners, especially
in the developing nations, are enormous, and we will continue to do all we can
to achieve a successful result,” wrote Portman.
Portman also emphasized the
importance of successfully concluding bilateral and regional agreements in 2006,
writing, “In parallel to its Doha Round efforts, the Administration will move
vigorously to negotiate new bilateral and regional trade agreements to create a
host of new opportunities for U.S. workers, farmers and
businesses.”
He also
said trade rules must be fair and aggressively enforced. “The Administration
agrees with lawmakers from both parties that free trade only works if the
parties agree to trade fairly. The Administration will continue to use all
available tools to ensure that our trading partners live up to their obligations
as WTO Members and FTA partners. We
will challenge and confront our trade partners who pursue policies and actions
that create illegal barriers to U.S. exports,” wrote
Portman.
Finally, Portman noted that, “The
emergence of China as a global power has created new
opportunities and new challenges.” Portman pledged to work with Congress, other
government agencies and the private sector on proposals, which were included in
a top-to-bottom review of U.S. trade policies
China, to better monitor and enforce
China’s compliance with its obligations
as a WTO member.
The Year in Review
The year
2005 was an active year in trade as the Administration worked toward a
comprehensive agreement in the World Trade Organization (WTO) talks, secured
congressional approval of free trade agreements with Bahrain, the Dominican
Republic and Central American countries, concluded a free trade agreement with
Peru, actively negotiated free trade agreements with several other countries,
and vigorously enforced global trade rules to ensure that our trading partners
met their commitments.
“The
Administration has focused on tangible progress on the bilateral, regional and
multilateral levels to expand trade opportunities,” Ambassador Portman wrote in
the Report’s overview.
With
regard to the WTO’s Doha Development Round he wrote, “The United States
energized the WTO talks prior to the ministerial meeting in
Hong
Kong in
December 2005 with a comprehensive proposal to make deep cuts in agricultural
tariffs and reduce trade-distorting agricultural subsidies, if other countries
would take reciprocal steps in their markets.”
With
regard to bilateral and regional agreements, Portman wrote, “Recently-concluded
FTA negotiations with Peru,
Colombia and
Oman, along with ongoing negotiations
with Ecuador, the Southern African Customs
Union (SACU), Panama,
Thailand, and the
United Arab
Emirates, could result in new market
opportunities in countries with which our two-way trade is more than $66
billion,” continued Portman. “With
the launch of FTA talks with the Republic of Korea and other major trading partners
possible this year, the United
States could tap the vast potential of
improved ties to markets with which it already has a strong trade
relationship.”
Portman
also emphasized trade’s role in helping promote economic growth and democratic
reform in the Middle
East and
reported on the progress of President Bush’s Middle East Free Trade Area (MEFTA)
initiative proposed in 2003. “This
year opened with significant movement toward making the MEFTA a reality,”
Portman added. “The FTA with
Morocco went into effect on
January 1,
2006. Also
in January, the President signed legislation to implement an agreement with
Bahrain, and the
United
States and
Oman formally signed the {free trade
agreement} concluded in the fall of 2005.”
The 2006 Trade Policy Agenda and the 2005
Annual Report is prepared according to the guidelines established under the
Trade Act of 1974, as amended. Click here for the
full report.
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