Category: NFTC In the News
Free Trade With Korea: Stuck In A Political Rut
Excerpt: Ratifying the U.S.-South Korea Free-Trade Agreement is a no-brainer, advocates say. So why has the trade agreement languished without Congressional approval since the Bush administration and South Korea signed the pact in 2007? And what will it take beyond a pricey, aggressive South Korean lobbying effort in Washington to get the agreement ratified?… The lobbying “makes sense because it’s the biggest FTA” since NAFTA, says Chuck Dittrich, vice president of regional trade initiatives for the National Foreign Trade Council… South Korea has “gone on a robust FTA expansion policy” with several nations, explains Stangarone. In addition to the EU deal, South Korea has free trade agreements with India, Chile and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations; a just-concluded pact with Peru; and is in negotiations with Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico and the Gulf Cooperation Council. “When you look at the landscape, the U.S. has a choice,” says Bill Kelly, senior vice president for the National Foreign Trade Council, which represents U.S. multinationals. “We can sign the FTA or cede the market in Korea to [the EU and] other countries.” Under that scenario, the U.S. would lose 345,000 current and new jobs diverted to other free trade agreements, notes a U.S. Chamber of Commerce study.
http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Articles/2011/03/11/Korean-Trade-Deal-Mired-in-Politics.aspx
Unlocking Business Support For A Global Trade Deal
Business Groups Left In ‘Highly Uncertain’ Position On Libya As U.S. Ties Fray
“Business Groups Left In ‘Highly Uncertain’ Position On Libya As U.S. Ties Fray”
The Hill
March 1, 2011
By Kevin Bogardus
Business groups that have lobbied to lift U.S. sanctions on Libya in the past are now backing stringent measures designed to punish Moammar Gadhafi’s regime as the dictator oversees a brutal crackdown on protesters.
USA*Engage, a trade group that often battles against unilateral sanctions by the United States, said it is now backing the new penalties imposed by the United Nations and the European Union, calling them “a specific, clear and direct message to the Libyan authorities that the world is watching and is holding them accountable.”
“While some members of the U.N., including the Unites States, are seeking to impose unilateral sanctions against the regime, we believe it is in the best interest of the people of Libya to take action in concert with the rest of the international community. Only through highly targeted multilateral action can we hope to make the most meaningful impact on Gadhafi’s regime, help the Libyan people and avoid counterproductive consequences,” said the association in a statement Monday
… Bill Reinsch, president of the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), told The Hill that American business has been left in a “highly uncertain” position by Gadhafi’s actions. “Libya never became the perfect good guy. It has always been a complicated, difficult relationship,” Reinsch said. “Doing business there has been an awkward experience. Some went in and got out, and some never went in.”
Like USA*Engage, NFTC lobbied to lift U.S. sanctions against Libya after the country dropped its weapons program in 2003. But now the group supports multilateral action against Libya due to its crackdown on the demonstrators.
http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/146601-libyas-lobbying-gains-erased-as-us-ties-fray
