USCIB Urges Governments to Continue to Strive for an Ambitious FTAA Agreement
New York, N.Y., November 21, 2003 – The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) released the following statement at the conclusion of the Eighth Ministerial meeting on the Free Trade Area of the Americas in Miami:
“USCIB urges the U.S. and its negotiating partners to continue to strive for an ambitious FTAA agreement.
“We have long argued for an FTAA that will be comprehensive, and yield the highest standards of liberalization and rules, including tariff reductions, top-down commitments in services, liberalization of investment barriers, and high standards to protect investment and intellectual property.
“USCIB members are disappointed that Ministers were unable to make substantive progress in Miami. We note that agreement was reached on a comprehensive Framework for continued negotiations. The Framework points us to a process for across-the-board obligations in each of the nine areas, with opportunities for countries to do more in any of these areas. This is not ideal, but it is the reality within which we now must proceed.
“We will work with our members, and with our business counterparts in the other FTAA countries, to continue to press negotiators to ensure that our goals and objectives can be achieved. We are optimistic that, at the end of the day, all parties will recognize the benefits of a broad agreement.”
USCIB promotes an open system of global commerce in which business can flourish and contribute to economic growth, human welfare and protection of the environment. Its membership includes some 300 leading U.S. companies, professional services firms and associations whose combined annual revenues exceed $3 trillion. As American affiliate of the leading international business and employers organizations, USCIB provides business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide and works to facilitate international trade.
Contact:
Jonathan Huneke, VP Communication, USCIB
(212) 703-5043 or jhuneke@uscib.org
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