(prensa.com) United States (U.S.) Trade Representative, Ron Kirk, said on Wednesday that he hoped – this year – to resolve the pending issues that are stalling the free trade agreements (FTAs) with Colombia and Panama, but did not provide any details as to what the issues were and offered no specific dates, as was requested by the legislative committee members that questioned him.
Appearing before the Senate Finance Committee, Ron Kirk said that the cooperation shown by the governments of Colombia and Panama to overcome differences was in fact “good news”, however asserted that there are still vital unresolved issues to work through in order to “not compromise universal American values.”
Both treaties have been stalled since 2006 and 2007 in the U.S. Congress. However, Kirk announced that the final version of the treaty with South Korea has been finalized and is being prepared for submission to Congress soon for ratification.