US President Vows To
Help Panama Clinch Free
Trade Agreement
US president George W.
Bush said Tuesday he
would do his best to get
Congress to approve a
pending free trade
agreement with Panama,
after meeting with its
President Martin
Torrijos in the White
House.
"The Panamanian free
trade vote is a priority
of this government. It
should be a priority of
the United States
Congress," Bush told
reporters after the
meeting.
Bush said he and his
administration would "do
everything in our
capacity to move the
trade bills" not only
with Panama, but with
Colombia and South Korea
as well.
The House of
Representatives last
month delayed a vote on
the Colombian trade pact
in a snub to the White
House. Lawmakers link
the agreement to
Colombia's progress in
human rights. The Panama
and South Korean pacts
are awaiting the vote on
Colombia.
Bush said he
congratulated Torrijos
for carrying out the
Panama Canal expansion
plan, adding that the
revamped waterway would
help both countries
"build a mutual future."
Other issues discussed
at their meeting
included the worldwide
spiralling price of
food, over which Bush
said Torrijos was
"deeply concerned" about
how it was affecting his
people, and the regional
fight against drug
trafficking.
Bush said the United
States had to do "a
better job" at curbing
its local demand for
drugs, and at helping
"our friends in the
neighborhood deal with
the suppliers of drugs."
Torrijos, Bush added,
"is committed to sharing
intelligence and working
closely ... together to
prevent drugs from being
transhipped through
Panama, which is bad for
his country and bad for
ours."
The US president took
the opportunity of
urging Congress to pass
his Merida Initiative
that calls for 1.55
billion dollars in
assistance over three
years to Mexico and
Central American nations
to fight drug
trafficking in their
region.
Torrijos arrived is
visiting the United
States together with his
Vice president and
Foreign Minister, Samuel
Lewis Navarro, and Trade
and Industry Minister
Carmen Gisela Vergara.
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