Canada and U.S. Free Trade

[farmers_son]

Given the crisis Canadian producers are facing due to the closure of the U.S. border to live cattle even though we have a free trade agreement with the U.S. in the form of NAFTA, I thought it would be interesting to see what other free trade agreements the U.S. has with other countries. By default, Canada effectively has free trade agreements with these countries because of NAFTA even though all the trade is first funneled through the U.S. before coming into Canada and vice versa. It almost appears as if all world trade will pass through the United States, coming or going.

NAFTA was the one of the first of these types of agreements. When we look at the never ending problems Canada has had with the U.S. after signing NAFTA, whether is it softwood lumber, cattle, wheat, fish, the list goes on and on, I wonder if these other countries know what they are getting themselves into.

Judge Cebull will be busy if he gets wind of all this free trade that needs to be stopped.

See: http://www.fas.usda.gov/itp/ftas.html

Free Trade Agreements:
Country Free Trade Agreements and Negotiations
U.S.-Australia

U.S.-Bahrain

U.S.-Chile

U.S.-Morocco

U.S.-Singapore

U.S.-Thailand


Regional Free Trade Agreements and Negotiations:

Free Trade Area Of the Americas (FTAA)

United States-Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR)

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

U.S.-Southern African Customs Union (SACU) Agricultural Trade


In addition the U.S. has negotiated specific trade agreements with countries on specific items:

See: http://www.fas.usda.gov/itp/agreements.html

Argentina
Argentina MOU Concerning Tobacco (8/95)
Argentina MOU on Agriculture (Uruguay Round, 3/94)

Australia
U.S. and Australia Complete Free Trade Agreement (02/08/04)

Bahrain
U.S. Bahrain Free Trade Agreement (9/14/04)

Brazil
Brazil Agreement on Tobacco Tariff-Rate Quota (9/95)

Bulgaria
Bulgaria WTO Accession Schedule
Canada

Canada Agreement on Sugar and Sugar-Containing Products (9/97)
Canada Softwood Lumber Agreement (5/96)
Canada Agreement on Beer Market Access in Quebec (4/94)
Canada Memorandum of Understanding of Provincial Beer Marketing (1993)
Canada Ultra-High Temperature Milk Agreement (10/93)
Canada Agreement Regarding Processed Chicken Quota (10/92)
Canada Agreement on Wheat (No longer valid)

Chile

United States and Chile Sign Historic Free Trade Agreement (06/06/03)
-- Final Texts (English; En Español)

China
Letter of Intent Between U.S. and China (2004)
China Market Access MOU (1992)
China Agreement on Trade Relations (1979)

Colombia
United States and Colombia Establish Consultative Committee on Agriculture (04/21/03)
Colombia Bananas MOU (1/96)

Costa Rica
Costa Rica Bananas MOU (1/96)

Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic tobacco (9/95)
Ecuador
Ecuador WTO Accession Schedule (7/95)
European Union
European Community Negotiations/Gatt Article XXIV:6 (1996)
European Community Cereal and Rice Agreement (12/95)
European Community Distilled Spirits and Spirt Drink Agreement (3/94)
European Community Agreement on Meat Inspection Standards (11/92)
Blair House: Oilseeds, Corn Gluten Feed and Malt-Barley Sprouts (12/92)
European Community Uruguay Round bilateral agreement
European Union Canned Fruit (4/92)
EU Corn Gluten Feed & Malt-Barley Sprouts (12/92)
EU Oilseeds (12/92)
European Union Corn Gluten Feed Memorandum of Understanding (10/91)
EU Pasta Agreement (8/87)
European Union Wine Accord (7/83)
EU Margin of Preference Agreement for Cereals

Ghana
United States-Ghana Consultative Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (established 06/29/000)
Guatemala
Guatemala tobacco (8/95)
Hungary
Hungary Export Subsidies
International
International Tropical Timber Agreement (1994)

Israel
Federal Register Notice -- Notice of Request for Public Comments on the Review and
Renegotiation of the United States-Israel Agreement on Trade in Agricultural Products (12/2000)
U.S.- Israel Almond agreement (10/97)
Israel Agreement on Trade In Agricultural Products (1996)
MISSING LETTER AND ANNEXES B&C from electronic version)
Israel Memorandum of Understanding (1992)
Israel Free Trade Agreement (1985)

Japan
Japan -- American Lumber Standards Committee Certificate (1/97)
Japan Distilled Spirits Agreement (12/97)
Japan Exchange of Letters on Apples (1993)
Japan Wood Product Agreement (6/90)
Japan Wood Product Agreement Annexes (6/90)

Jordan
The U.S Signs Historic Free Trade Agreement with Jordan (11/2000)
Fact Sheet on the U.S - Jordan FTA (11/2000)
Text/Annexes of the Agreement (11/2000)

Korea
Korea Shelf-Life Agreement (7/95)
Korea Agricultural Market Access (Uruguay Round, 12/93)
Korea Beef Agreements (1993 & 1990)
Korea Liberalization of Agricultural Products (301 case, 5/89)
Korea Market Access for Wine and Wine Products (1988)

Mongolia
Mongolia WTO Accession Schedule
Morocco
U.S.- Morocco Free Trade Agreement (March 2004)

Panama
Panama WTO Accession Schedule (9/96)
Peru
United States and Peru Establish Consultative Committee on Agriculture (10/21/02)

Philippines
Philippine Pork and Poultry MOU (2/98)

Russia
Secretary Veneman Comments on U.S – Russia Agreement on U. S. Meat and Poultry Market Access (09/29/03)
-- U.S., Russia Reach Poultry, Pork, Beef Export Agreement
(analysis, U.S. Department of State; 09/29/03)
Russia-US MOU Regarding Agricultural Cooperation
Russia - MOU on Plant Quarantine (5/99) available only in hard copy
Russia Agreed Minutes on Poultry (3/96)

Singapore
President Bush Signs U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (05/06/03)
-- Joint Statement Between the United States and Singapore (05/06/03)
-- USTR Publishes Singapore FTA Text (Singapore FTA Text) (03/07/03)

Taiwan
Taiwan WTO Accession bilateral (2/98)
Taiwan Temporary Immediate Tariffs (4/94)
Taiwan Beer, Wine and Cigarettes Agreement (1986/1991)

Turkey
Turkey tobacco (9/95)
Uruguay
United States and Uruguay Establish Consultative Committee on Agriculture (04/11/03)

Vietnam
Agreement on Trade Relations (7/00)
U.S. letter
Vietnamese letter
Annex

Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe tobacco (9/95)

[ivbinconned]

"US free trade aggreements are really about protection of US investments abroad" so says Lou Dobbs, CNN

[kpb]

yes and exploiting the resources of the countries on the other end of the free trade agreement.


kpb

[ivbinconned]

And whose fault is that?

[farmers_son]

I think it goes without saying that the U.S. enters into these trade agreements because it furthers U.S. interests.

No doubt the other participants felt it furthered their interests in some form as well.

[kpb]

If you're Chile and you enter a free trade agreement with the United States no one better have the illusion that the agreement will benefit both sides equally. It's purely a deal for the maximum exploitation of the weaker party by the stronger one.

After what our industry has been through do you seriously think that any agreement has any meaning to the U.S if that agreement goes against their own interests at any time?. The U.S. only acts in its own best interests on the international stage and the sooner we realize that the better off we'll be instead of hoping they will act, say, so-called "fairly" or "on the basis of science".

kpb

[grassfarmer]

The irony of it... after WW2 the US did so much to end all the European empires - the British, Dutch, Portugese, Spanish and French were all pressured to give up their colonies to allow these people their independance and to stop their resources being exploited by their colonial masters. Enter the US - the biggest exploiter of foreign resources and people the world has ever seen. So much for freeing these enslaved masses.

[kpb]

grassfarmer, you are exactly right. I just wish we acted in Canada like an independent country instead of hoping and wishing and praying that the U.S. still likes us. It's pathetic.

kpb

[ivbinconned]

My point in asking the question is that we have only the leadership of our country to blame for not protecting OUR interests!!

Whats the point in belly aching, whining and complaining about the U.S. Its OUR LEADERS that let the packers operate in a fashion, here, that they are not allowed to act at home.

But our leadership will always follow the principles of a pick pocket...make you look the other way!!

[cowman]

America plays hardball...no two ways about it!
On the other hand what ivebinconned says is absolutely true? Who really got us in this mess in the first place? It was our federal government with a lot of help from the provincial governments.
How come our government can't put limits on the packers monopoly? How come they can't make policy for things like testing or feed bans based on what might work for us? Why is it before they do anything they need to check in with their masters in Washington?
Well, we elected them right? And from the looks of it we just might re-elect the same bunch of incompetents again? So defacto, who can you blame?
Maybe time to realize that we can't win at this game?