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Uri Party to set up Assembly FTA Panel
The governing Uri Party Wednesday decided to create a special National Assembly panel on a free trade agreement (FTA) to better prepare for the next round of talks with the United States.
A chance for social movements, or a chance for transnationals?
In the context that the KorUS FTA is taking more specific form of neo-liberal globalization, it gives new possibility of anti-globalization movement to be as a just intellectuals’ and activists’ but a mass movement in South Korea.
US urged to act on FTA with Thailand
Due to recent major political volatility, a senior US negotiator is warning Washington to act fast in signing a free trade pact (FTA) with Thailand.
TSX CEO urges PM to discuss adding securities trading to free trade agreement
The head of Canada’s largest stock exchange wants Prime Minister Stephen Harper to discuss the possibility of adding securities trading to the North American Free Trade Agreement when he meets with US President George W Bush next month.
Andean bloc seeks US trade extension
Andean leaders have agreed a new course for their trade bloc without Venezuela. They plan to urge Washington to extend expiring trade benefits designed to help counter cocaine production in the South American region.
Honest Tony, peace broker
Rather than rebuke Israel, the UK and its fellow EU member states are actually sitting down today with Israeli representatives in Brussels to seal the continuation of the EU-Israel association agreement. The agreement grants Israel important trading preferences for its exports into the EU, even though these are supposedly conditional on respect for human rights from both sides.
House could delay major trade votes
A group of US lawmakers pushed on Tuesday for a new trade deal with Vietnam, but a senior Republican said Congress may not vote on trade legislation until after November’s congressional election.
Peru’s Alan Garcia to revise free trade deal with the US
In a news conference in Lima last week, Garcia suggested one change he might seek would be to add language to discourage Peru’s importing of subsidized US crops.
Guatemalan bishop: Free trade widens gap between rich, poor
Free trade under the current economic rules can only widen the gap between rich and poor in the Americas, said the head of the Guatemalan bishops’ conference.
Is free trade just? Church speaks for those who fall through cracks
Free trade agreements have become a bone of contention again in the Andes, and Catholics must take a stand, said an international economic development policy adviser for the US bishops.
Coalition on US-Malaysia FTA memorandum to the government of Malaysia
Given the lack of transparency and accountability in the on-going negotiations and the strong likelihood of an imbalanced outcome in the US-Malaysia FTA negotiations, we urgently call on the government to halt all further negotiations until a comprehensive cost-benefit assessment is done.
Iraq eyes EU trade deal
Iraq’s new government plans to start immediately negotiating a trade and cooperation deal with the European Union, its foreign minister said Monday hailing a "new chapter" in ties with the bloc.
The rise in bilateral free trade agreements
In the absence of a breakthrough in multilateral talks, the Bush administration has pressed ahead with smaller bilateral free trade agreements to secure preferential deals as well as cement ties with strategically important countries in the Middle East, the Pacific Rim, and Latin America.
Malaysian-US FTA talks ’easier’ than Thai
The United States and Malaysia began a first round of talks Monday to forge a bilateral free trade agreement they hope will be concluded by early next year.
Trade treaties and challenging US hegemony in the Americas
Venezuela’s president Hugo Chávez, Brazil’s president Lula Inacio da Silva, and Nestor Kirchner, president of Argentina, met in Sao Paulo, Brazil on April 26 to discuss possibilities for integration and collaboration. On April 29, Cuba’s president Fidel Castro met with Chávez and newly elected Bolivian president Evo Morales to sign a People Trade Agreement (TPC), which is seen as a step towards the alternative trade agreement being proposed by Chávez, the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA).
Korea pledges to protect farmers in FTA talks
South Korea aims to protect sensitive agricultural products even if a free trade agreement (FTA) is signed with the United States, a government negotiator said Tuesday.
US FTA a different ball game altogether
The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations between Malaysia and the United States, which kicked off yesterday (12 June 2006) on the island of Penang, were wrapped in secrecy even though the issues to be discussed have far-reaching implications for Malaysian citizens and Malaysia as a sovereign nation. Mind you, all this is unfolding within the larger context of the din, frenzy and exhilaration of the World Cup.
United States and Rwanda sign agreement to deepen trade and investment relations
The United States and Rwanda today signed an agreement aimed at deepening and strengthening trade and investment ties between the two countries.
Malaysia says cautious on US trade deal
Malaysia said it was proceeding cautiously with negotiations for a free-trade deal with the United States which began this week, and would not act against the national interest.
Japan-Malaysia FTA to take effect on July 13
A free trade agreement between Japan and Malaysia will take effect on July 13 to scrap tariffs on essentially all industrial goods and most agricultural, forestry and fishery products within 10 years, the Japanese government said Tuesday.