Ecuador rules out FTA with US
Ecuador Rules Out FTA with US
Quito, Jan 23 2008 (Prensa Latina)— Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Maria Isabel Salvador ruled out a Free Trade Agreement with the United States but defended a commercial deal with that country.
We don’t want a FTA, but we are working to reach a commercial agreement with Washington that is beneficial for both parties, Salvador noted.
She also ruled out that Ecuador would beg the US Congress to renovate the ATPDA (Law for Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication).
The Ecuadorean foreign minister pointed out that it is a right gained by the country’s success in fighting drug trafficking, and the government is just making efforts for an extension.
Salvador said the country would sign a commercial agreement with Chile to strengthen bilateral cooperation.
The accord will be penned in March, during Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa’s official visit to Chile.
Finally, she repeated Ecuador’s decision to consider the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) and the National Liberation Army as irregular groups.
