Panama FTA not on US Congress current agenda

(Newsroompanama.com) Panama’s Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is not even on the distant agenda of the US Congress.

 

No deadline has been set for the presentation of free trade agreements with Colombia and Panama.

 

National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer, said that the White House is committed to continuing to work on both treaties, but did not respond to a question on whether the U.S. government plans to present both at the same time, or consider sending one of them to Congress ahead of the other.

 

Panama’s president, Ricardo Martinelli replied to the rebuff with a statement saying that Panama was in no hurry, but the US would be the losers.

 

Colombian Vice-President, Angelino Garzón, is in the U.S. capital asking Congress ratify the treaty with Colombia this year.

 

According to reports, the Colombia agreement is currently deadlocked because of criticism regarding the amount of trade unionists killed each year and Democratic legislator Sandy Levin said the Panamanian Congress must approve major labor reforms as a step towards the ratification of the treaty.

 

The treaty with South Korea will likely be submitted to Congress for ratification before July 1, 2011.

 

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Original Source: Newsroompanama.com

Date Retrieved: January 29, 2011.