Building Momentum but Problems Remain for the Colombia: U.S. Free Trade Agreement
On April 7, 2008, President George W. Bush delivered the American/Colombian Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to Congress with hopes that it would receive timely approval. Bush lamented that trade restrictions with Colombia were so asymmetrical that “our markets are open to Colombian products, but barriers exist to make it harder to sell American products in Colombia.” The trade treaty, agreed to by both Colombia and the Bush administration, has awaited congressional ratification since it was signed in November 2006. The treaty languished for years until 2011, when President Obama gave his State of the Union address which directly highlighted the pending FTA with Colombia as well FTAs with Panama and South Korea that Congress had also passed over. President Obama stated, “Before I took office, I made it clear that we would enforce our trade agreements, and that I would only sign deals that keep faith with American workers, and promote American jobs. That’s what we did with Korea, and that’s what I intend to do as we pursue agreements with Panama and Colombia.” 1
This analysis was prepared by COHA Research Associate Augustus Urschel
Blog de Octavio Islas 