US hopes to conclude FTA with M’sia by June ’07
Edge Daily, 11 October 2005
US hopes to conclude FTA with M’sia by June ’07
By Ashwin Raman
The United States hopes to conclude any possible Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Malaysia by June 2007, said Assistant US Trade Representative (USTR) for Southeast Asia and Pacific Affairs Barbara Weisel.
She said officials from both sides had yet to officially state intentions for an FTA, although Malaysia had in the past expressed interest in having one with the US. Figures by the US Census Bureau in July 2005 ranked Malaysia as the 10th largest trading partner of the US.
Weisel said the US law, Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), signed by President George W Bush in 2002 was to implement trade agreements that would encourage trade and investment between the US and its trading partners.
Under this authority, the US signed an FTA with Singapore in 2002, a trade and investment framework agreement (TIFA) with Malaysia in May 2004 and is currently in negotiations with Thailand for an FTA in 2006.
“The Trade Promotion Authority expires in June 2007. So we would prefer for an FTA with Malaysia to be concluded by then,” Weisel told reporters in Kuala Lumpur on Oct 10.
She met with Ministry of International Trade and Industry secretary-general Datuk Sidek Hassan on Oct 10 for the third Malaysia-US joint council on trade and investment meeting under the TIFA.
Weisel said the agenda of trade and investment meeting covered priority issues including improving market access in automotive, financial services and agricultural sectors and the enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR).
Officials from both sides also discussed cooperation and trade capacity-building projects that would strengthen trade relations in the areas of customs, IPR enforcement and sanitary and phytosanitary requirements.
Weisel said Malaysia had made significant progress in the protection of IPR and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s efforts in fighting corruption were encouraging for more American foreign direct investment.
“We also wanted to take the opportunity today to discuss how we operate an FTA and discuss the role of our (the US) Congress, which is our partner and to ensure understanding that any FTA we do would have to be approved by Congress,” she said.
