Text: Kerry Calls Trade Pact Step in Normalizing U.S.-Vietnam Ties
(Opening statement for June 26 Senate Finance panel)

Senator John Kerry (Democrat of Massachusetts) called on Congress to quickly approve the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement signed a year ago by then-President Bill Clinton.

At a hearing June 26, Kerry said he was confident that there is substantial support for the pact in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. "We should move it quickly so that the benefits will begin to accrue for both countries," he said.

Kerry, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs and a member of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on International Trade, said the agreement focuses primarily on trade in goods, intellectual property rights, trade in services, and investment. It also includes important chapters on business facilitation and transparency, he said.

According to Kerry, who is a veteran of the Vietnam War, the agreement is "a win-win for both the United States and Vietnam."

Following is the text of Kerry's statement, as prepared for delivery:

(begin text)

Opening Statement
Senator John Kerry
Finance Committee Hearing
on the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement
June 26, 2001

This afternoon the Committee on Finance is holding a hearing on the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), which was submitted to the Congress by the Bush Administration on June 8. This agreement is another major step in the process of normalizing relations between the United States and Vietnam -- a process made possible by Vietnamese cooperation on the POW/MIA (prisoner-of-war/missing-in-action) issue and growing recognition among Americans that U.S. interests would be better served by building a new relationship with Vietnam.

In 1994 President Clinton opened the door to economic interaction by lifting the U.S. trade embargo imposed on Vietnam since the war. After establishing diplomatic relations in 1995, the United States and Vietnam began negotiations in 1996 on a bilateral trade agreement. Those negotiations culminated in the agreement which we are discussing today.

The Vietnam agreement is the most sweeping and detailed agreement that the United States has ever negotiated with a so-called Jackson-Vanik country. It focuses on four core areas -- trade in goods, intellectual property rights, trade in services, and investment -- but it also includes important chapters on business facilitation and transparency. It is a win-win for both the United States and Vietnam.

The government of Vietnam has agreed to undertake a wide-range of steps to open its markets to foreign trade and investment including decreasing tariffs on key American goods; reducing barriers to U.S. services particularly in the banking, insurance and telecommunications areas; agreeing to protect intellectual property rights pursuant to international standards; increasing market access for American investments; and adopting measures to promote commercial transparency. These commitments, some of which are phased in over time, will not only improve the climate for American investors but also keep Vietnam on the road of economic reform, international economic integration, and eventual membership in the WTO (World Trade Organization).

For Vietnam this agreement provides access to the largest market in the world on normal trade relations status (NTR) at a time when economic growth has slowed. Equally important it signals that the United States is committed to expanded economic ties and further normalization of the bilateral relationship.

This agreement was signed one year ago. Now that the Bush Administration has sent it to the Congress, I am hopeful that both houses will move quickly before the summer recess on the resolution that must be enacted to bring this agreement into force. Normalizing relations with Vietnam has enjoyed bipartisan support in the Congress since this process began a little over a decade ago. I am confident that there is substantial support in both houses for this agreement, and we should move it quickly so that the benefits will begin to accrue for both countries.

(end text)

(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

Return to U.S.-Vietnam Relations.

Return to IIP Home Page.