US for corruption clause in trade agreement with Dhaka
US for corruption clause in trade agreement with Dhaka
Publish Date : 2/15/2005 4:43:00 PM
Source : Business News Onlypunjab.com
The US is firmly against Bangladesh’s request to exclude a clause related to bribery and corruption from the proposed Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) between the two countries, reports Xinhua.
The US delegation, comprising senior trade policy adviser on Asia and Pacific affairs Betsee E. Steelman and a trade official from the US embassy in Dhaka, was firm on inclusion of bribery and corruption issues despite Dhaka’s objection.
Joint Commerce Secretary Elias Ahmed, head of a six-member Bangladesh delegation at the talks, was quoted as saying that the decision on corruption and bribery issues had not been finalised yet.
He, however, said there was nothing wrong about "inclusion of issues related to corruption and bribery in the agreement."
"The agreement will call for elimination of corruption and bribery in both the countries, not just Bangladesh."
The US reportedly has so far signed TIFA with more than a dozen countries. However, corruption and bribery issues have not featured in the agreements with Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and more recently Afghanistan.
