White House warns Costa Rica ahead of trade vote
By Doug Palmer
Reuters
WA****NGTON
The United States will not renegotiate a free trade agreement with Costa
Rica if
voters in that country turn down the pact in a referendum on Sunday, the
White
House said.
"If the free trade agreement is rejected, the United States will not
renegotiate
the agreement," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said in a statement on
Saturday that was the latest in a series of conflicting messages from
Wa****ngton
ahead of Costa Rica's vote.
"The United States has never renegotiated a free trade agreement that has
been
approved by the Congress," she said.
Perino also warned that some trade benefits that Costa Rica now enjoys
under the
separate Caribbean Basin Initiative could be at risk if voters decide not
to
join the U.S.-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) along with four
of
its neighbors, the United States and the Dominican Republic.
"With respect to trade preferences provided under the Caribbean Basin
Initiative
which will expire in September 2008, the United States has never before
confronted the question of extending unilateral trade preferences to a
country
that has rejected a reciprocal trade agreement," Perino said.
The referendum has split Costa Rica, with President Oscar Arias and some
businesses saying CAFTA will bring investment and jobs. Opponents says it
will
mean a flood of cheap farm im****ts and limit the country's sovereignty by
taking
investment disputes to international arbitration.
The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly approved the agreement in 2005,
with
most Democrats voting no. Many Senate Democrats were also opposed.
DEMOCRATS REASSURE VOTERS
The free trade deal locks in Costa Rica's duty-free access to the U.S.
market
under the Caribbean Basin Initiative and phases out many trade barriers
facing
U.S. manufacturers, farmers and service industry companies in Costa Rica.
Although many of the trade benefits Costa Rica currently receives are
permanent,
others benefiting Costa Rica's textile and tuna industries expire next
year.
Democrats in Congress -- including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate
Majority Leader Harry Reid -- have sought to reassure Costa Rican voters
that
their country would not lose trade benefits if the pact is defeated.
"Congress is constitutionally responsible for regulating international
commerce.
As such, we reiterate our long-standing position that preference programs
should
not be conditioned on a country entering into a free trade agreement (FTA)
with
the United States," House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel
said
in a statement on Friday with Rep. Sander Levin, who chairs a House trade
subcommittee.
Meanwhile, the Bush administration and congressional Republicans have
warned
there is no guarantee the Democratic-led Congress will renew the benefits
that
expire next year if the agreement goes down.
"Having worked to pass this deal two years ago, I know that any so-called
guarantee that suggests the House will continue granting special trade
status to
Costa Rica indefinitely and without limits does not exist," House
Republican
Whip Roy Blunt said in a statement on Tuesday.
President George W. Bush's chief trade negotiator, U.S. Trade
Representative
Susan Schwab, also warned Costa Rican voters this week to think twice
about
rejecting the pact, and the White House continued that line.
"Voters in Costa Rica should be aware that many of those assuring Costa
Rica of
continued access to the U.S. market have consistently opposed measures
that
would open the U.S. market to goods from Costa Rica and other countries,"
Perino
said.
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