09 May 2003
U.S. Official Views Building Middle East Trade Area Over Decade
(Stability, prosperity sought from graduated approach to open markets)
(430)
By Bruce Odessey
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington -- President Bush's trade initiative for the Middle East
envisions building a free trade area gradually, country by country, a
senior administration official says.
In a May 9 teleconference with reporters after the president's
announcement of the plan, the official said the United States already
has a free trade agreement (FTA) with Jordan and is negotiating one
with Morocco. At some point, when a critical mass of bilateral FTAs in
the Middle East and North Africa has been achieved, he said, the
United States would try to fashion a single regional FTA.
"Ultimately, we see this leading to a U.S.-Middle East free trade
agreement," he said. "It's not something that's going to occur
tomorrow or the next day but is a process with that as the ultimate
goal within a decade."
The official, who asked not to be identified, said that the initiative
should support both economic and political stability in the region.
"What we are proposing is to work with the countries at the level at
which they are now" to bring them to a higher level of engagement in
the world trading system, he said.
With those countries already seeking World Trade Organization (WTO)
accession, he said, the United States would work on achieving this
goal. With those countries at a lower level of engagement, he said,
the United States would work to negotiate bilateral investment
treaties and to establish basic trade frameworks.
The United States also would offer targeted capacity building
assistance to negotiate trade agreements and carry them out, he said.
The official likened the Middle East initiative to one President Bush
has started with Southeast Asian countries. He mentioned that Bahrain
and Egypt have expressed interest in negotiating FTAs with the United
States.
He said the Bush initiative aims to foster trade not only between the
United States and Middle East countries but also among Middle East
countries. He did not mention whether he viewed Israel as potential
part of a regional FTA; the United States and Israel already have a
bilateral FTA.
He did say any country now participating in the Arab boycott of Israel
would have to lift the boycott in order to negotiate an FTA with the
United States. WTO rules prohibit participation in such a boycott, and
WTO membership would have to precede any FTA, he said.
Not eligible for the initiative are Pakistan and Afghanistan, which
are not considered part of the Middle East, the official said.
(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
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