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militarism | terrorism | security

Free trade fuels drug smuggling
13-Feb-2006 Houston Chronicle
US drug agents say that free trade with Mexico has had an ugly and unintended consequence: Just as legitimate business people have flocked to Nuevo Laredo, so have criminals.
FTA to ease NK nuclear concern
7-Feb-2006
A free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the United States would help ease concerns over North Korea’s nuclear weapons development, a high-ranking official said Tuesday.
Pact could mature alliance
2-Feb-2006 JoongAng
The relationship between Korea and the United States until now was a firm security alliance to prevent the spread of communism. The announcement of free trade agreement negotiations is an expression of a will to establish a more developed general alliance, not only in ideology and military on a security level, but also in economic gains.
‘Thaksinisation’ strains Thai-US relations
22-Jan-2006 The Nation
When Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra went to Washington DC last September to meet President George W Bush, they agreed that the Thai-US free-trade agreement (FTA) would be completed by this June. At a subsequent meeting with Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, he also asked for US assistance in southern Thailand. Obviously there was a clear link between the trade and defence policies of the two countries.
EU proposals to Iran (summary 2005)
17-Jan-2006 IranMania
On 5 August 2005, the E3/EU passed to Iran a "Framework for a Long-term Agreement". Under it, the E3/EU would work for an early conclusion of negotiations on a draft EU/Iran Trade & Co-operation Agreement.
Senator McCain backs US-NZ free trade deal
11-Jan-2006
A senior United States Senator, John McCain says New Zealand’s nuclear free policy should not affect the country’s chances of securing a free trade deal with the US.
No pax americana
8-Nov-2005 Khaleej Times
Indigenous movements are indeed a threat to the free-trade policies Bush is hawking, with ever fewer buyers, across Latin America. Their power comes not from terror but a terror-resistant strain of hope, so sturdy it can take root in the midst of Colombia’s seemingly hopeless civil war.
US official urges Taiwan to do more on FTA
1-Nov-2005 Taipei Times
"The ball is in Taiwan’s court. It’s not enough simply to say that we want an FTA."
Varieties of imperial aggression: The Andean trade treaties
29-Oct-2005 Znet
One crucial element common to all these bilateral trade talks is the ruthless determination of rich countries to destroy poorer countries’ national sovereignty.
President Chen urges US, Japan to consider FTAs with Taiwan
26-Oct-2005 Asia Pulse
President Chen Shui-bian on Tuesday urged the United States and Japan to consider signing free trade agreements with Taiwan, saying that only by having such agreements in place can the island’s economy stand without heavily depending on China and can security and peace in the Asia-Pacific region be maintained.
Peters to oppose FTA with China
20-Oct-2005 stuff
New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters says he will continue to oppose a free trade agreement with China, although it is government policy to negotiate one.
War support could win US contracts
12-Oct-2005 AAP
Australia’s support of the US in Iraq could help local companies crack the huge US government contract market, an American consultant on the US-Australia FTA says.
American Business Council welcomes FTA with US
22-Sep-2005 Khaleej Times
Welcoming the signing of the Free Trade Agreement between the US and the UAE, Anis Nassar, president of the American Business Council in Dubai said the move would help increase the economical potential of the Emirates.
EU-Syria Association Agreement (2004)
22-Aug-2005
US Middle East economic policy: Are trade-based initiatives an effective tool in the war on terrorism?
19-Aug-2005 Center for Contemporary Conflict
An assessment published by a US military research outfit.
Terrorism, agriculture and US-India cooperation
12-Aug-2005 ZNet
Terrorism and agriculture are among the issues raised in the joint India-US Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement issued on 18 July 2005 during Prime Minister Man Mohan Singh’s meeting with President Bush.
Free trade showdown: How long can Panama hold out for an agreement that reflects its own national interests?
10-Aug-2005 COHA
DR-CAFTA’s narrow victory will incite US domestic producers’ lobbies to exert heavier pressure to get a US-Panama agreement more favorable to US industry.
US cautions EU over Syria deal
6-Jun-2005 Al Jazeera
Washington has urged the EU to hold off on signing a trade and aid pact with Syria, citing its doubts that Damascus withdrew all intelligence agents from Lebanon and was allowing fighters to enter Iraq.
FTA with EU looks more imminent than ever
11-Apr-2005 Zawya
The stage is being developed for a fast-track free trade agreement (FTA) between the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council and 25-member European Union. Possibly, the EU has felt the urge to sign an FTA with the GCC now that the US has moved to reach bilateral agreements with individual GCC states.
Corporate conquest, global geopolitics: Intellectual property rights and bilateral investment treaties
17-Mar-2005 Seedling
Examines how bilateral investment treaties and free trade agreements which contain specific investment provisions reflect geopolitical concerns and redefine rights and privileges for transnational corporations, including with respect to commercial control over biodiversity through intellectual property rights.