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Email this citationCIAO DATE: 7/00
Free Trade in the Americas: Fulfilling the Promise of Miami and Santiago
Ambler Moss
Stephen Lande
North South Center
University of Miami
April, 1998
Abstract
The creation of a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) was the bold centerpiece of the Summit of the Americas held in Miami in December 1994, and the FTAA recently received further impetus at the Summit of the Americas II in Santiago, Chile. This Agenda Paper, comprises two essays, one an overview of the process by Ambler Moss, "Moving Toward a Free Trade Area of the Americas," and the other a look forward by Stephen Lande, "Launching Negotiations and Concrete Progress by the Millennium," which assesses the progress made to date in working toward the FTAA and particularly examines the subject of "business facilitation" or measures designed to enhance the flows of trade even as the FTAA is being negotiated.
Despite the absence of fast-track legislation in the United States, the findings of these authors provide the basis for continued optimism about the ability of the Summit process to produce an FTAA on time. Important progress is taking place in the negotiating groups that cover such matters as customs, rules of origin, intellectual property, investment, governmental procurement, technical standards, and others. Their analysis suggests that the absence of fast-track authority is a temporary setback that is likely to be addressed by the time an accord is ready for consideration, some years ahead.
