Baucus Speaks On Upcoming US-Korea Trade Negotiations
Ambassador Schwab, Korean Ambassador Lee join Baucus at dinner in Bozeman, MT
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Max Baucus (D-Mont.), Ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, will speak this evening before the Montana Farm Bureauregarding trade relations between the U.S. and Korea. The two nations will commence afifth round of negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement on Monday in Big Sky,Montana. Also attending the dinner, which was held at the Montana Farm BureauHeadquarters in Bozeman, were United States Trade Representative Susan Schwab andKorean Ambassador Lee Tae-Sik, both of whom are also in Montana this weekend.
The text of the Senator’s remarks follows here.
Tonight’s dinner is a very special event, and it is really the perfect way to kick off the fifth round of Korea –U.S. free trade negotiations. I want to thank everyone for comingthis evening, Ambassador Schwab and Ambassador Lee in particular. And thank you toour hosts for this evening, the Montana Farm Bureau.
Having these trade talks here in Montana gives us a chance to show our state off to ourKorean guests, and to our visitors from Washington, DC. Even in winter, the countryhere is majestic. You have to see it to believe it. And when you see it first hand, youcan’t help but make the connection between this amazing natural beauty and the highquality of Montana’s agricultural products.
I thank Ambassador Lee, for joining us. It is an honor to have him here. And it is a markof the importance that Korea has attached to these historic negotiations. I am glad thatyou had a chance to see a bit more of Montana this weekend. Ambassador Lee was inMissoula earlier today, not for the football game but to visit the Korean War Memorialthere.
More than fifty years ago, Koreans and Americans, fighting side-by-side, forged a bondbetween our countries. That bond has been strengthened over the interceding years,through trade, tourism, investment and other exchanges. And agriculture has alwaysbeen an important part of that relationship.
The Korean War decimated the Korean milling industry. All four of the mills in theSouth were destroyed. The U.S. sent shipments of wheat flour under our Food for PeaceProgram. When the Korean milling industry rebuilt their first mill in 1953, the U.S.wheat industry was there to help. That collaboration continued as other modern millswere built in Korea. And in 1956, the U.S. began to ship wheat, instead of wheat flour, toKorea. Over the intervening half a century, South Korea grew into one of the mostsophisticated wheat markets in the world, and a satisfied customer for more than amillion tons of U.S. wheat every year.
The historical ties between our countries make this FTA unique. For 50 years, we haveworked together for peace and prosperity in Asia and around the world. And let’s notforget that the FTA is a big deal for both of our economies. Korea is our 7th largesttrading partner and our 7th largest export market. Last year, a total of $72 billion ingoods and services was traded between our countries. A free trade agreement could raiseboth our incomes by billions of dollars a year. That is why I first called for free tradeagreement negotiations with Korea in 1999. And that is why I have pushed hard for thesenegotiations ever since.
Montana farmers and ranchers recognize that trade is hugely important to our agriculture.Exports account for more than a quarter of the value of agricultural production. One outof every three acres planted in the United States is producing for export. For some crops,like wheat, cotton, and peas and lentils, it is even more. And every dollar of exportscreates nearly another dollar and a half in supporting activities to process, package,finance and ship agricultural products. So our farm exports, which reached a record $62.4billion in 2005, generated an additional $92 billion in supporting business activities.
Here in Montana, three out of every fives acres planted to wheat is destined for export.
Agriculture gave Montana nearly half of its $1 billion in exports last year. And Koreawas one of our top ten export markets. In fact, five of the top ten export markets for allMontana products are in Asia. That is why I focus so much on strengthening trade tieswith that region.
I recognize that getting an agreement on agriculture will not be easy. But it is absolutelyvital to ensuring the benefits of this FTA. A lot of those benefits will come from bringingdown barriers to agricultural trade. Right now, Korea’s average agricultural tariff is 52percent. That’s nearly five times greater than the U.S.
Barley exports are limited by restrictive tariff-rate quotas and very high out-of-quotatariffs. The tariffs on beef and beef offals range from eight to forty percent.
Despite these high barriers, Korea is still our sixth largest agricultural trade partner,importing more than $2 billion in U.S. farm products in 2005. There is demand for highquality U.S. products in Korea. And that demand will only grow under an FTA. Thatwill certainly benefit Montana. And it will benefit Korean consumers even more. Rightnow, it is estimated that they pay as much as ten times as much as consumers in othercountries for their food.
Let me say a little bit more about beef. I have made no secret of my view. Trade in thefull range of U.S. beef products for animals of any age will have to be a part of thisagreement. Korea used to be our second largest market for beef. Korea used to buy morethan $800 million dollars in beef a year. We need to re-establish that trade. There is noscientific justification for excluding bone-in beef, or offals, or meat from animals morethan 30 months old. There is no scientific justification for rejecting shipments when abone chip is found, either. I am confident that, relying on the scientific evidence andinternational standards, we can find a solution that will allow Korean consumers to enjoydelicious Montana beef.
Now, I am very happy to introduce you to Ambassador Susan Schwab. And I am happyto introduce Ambassador Schwab to Montana. We are really lucky to have her as theUnited States Trade Representative. She has long been a staunch supporter of Americanagricultural producers in our trade negotiations. In fact, her first job in trade policy wasas an agricultural trade negotiator with USTR.
As you know, she went toe-to-toe with the Europeans, the Brazilians and the rest of theworld last July in Geneva. She refused to accept what she knew would not be a gooddeal for U.S. farmers and ranchers. She has been able to bring an end to the softwoodlumber dispute with Canada. She has kept market access for U.S. beef at the top of thelist in our negotiations with Peru, Colombia, Vietnam, and Russia. As a result, we havegotten those countries to lift their bans on our beef. And I know that she will do the samewith Korea.
And now I give you the United States Trade Representative, Ambassador Susan Schwab.
###
Next Article Previous Article