Senators Say Lower Tariffs in Developing World Could Raise US Standing
Senators criticized both Congress and the administration's lack of action to use lower tariffs to build relationships in the developing world, at a Foreign Relations Committee hearing on strategic competition with China. The hearing, which was meant to focus on China's influence in Africa, Latin America and Europe, and what the U.S. could do to counter it, was held July 30.
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Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., who served as a missionary in Honduras in his early 20s, said that the U.S. "had a real opportunity in Ecuador," as Ecuador pressed to open free-trade agreement negotiations, and members of Congress called on the administration to do so in 2021, 2022 and 2023 (see 2303270065).
Ecuador's president at the time "asked for a trade deal. We didn't do it," he said, and said that the Biden administration's view is that "trade deals aren't good politics."
He said it feels like the U.S. is going backward in its relationships in Latin America.
Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., who leads the Subcommittee on Africa, asked witness Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell how important it is for Congress to renew the African Growth and Opportunity Act in a timely manner. Coons had just said that China's trade with Africa has grown tenfold since Coons took office in 2011, to $240 billion, while U.S.-Africa trade is just $48 billion. He introduced an AGOA renewal bill in April (see 2404120007)
Campbell said, "I think it's critical." Campbell said "there's a lot of gamesmanship" in Congress, with some suggesting Congress should wait to renew AGOA. "I would get it done," Campbell said, adding that "it's one of the few tools we have" to bolster U.S. relationships in Africa.