Senate Passes Russian Trade Bill, With a Human Rights Caveat
Source: New York Times
WASHINGTON — The Senate voted on Thursday to finally eliminate cold war-era trade restrictions on Russia, but at the same time it condemned Moscow for human rights abuses, threatening to further strain an already delicate relationship with the Kremlin.
In a statement issued after the Senate vote, the White House mentioned the human rights component of the bill only in passing, instead emphasizing that the president was looking forward to signing a measure that would level the playing field for American workers.
In August Russia joined the World Trade Organization. As part of its pact with the trade group, Russia lowered tariffs for other member countries, but only those that granted it normal trade relations.
Initially the Senate faced some pressure to pass a bill that punished human rights violators from all nations, not just those who are Russian. But the House bill applied only to Russia. And the Senate followed suit, as supporters of the bill wanted something that would pass quickly and not require a complicated back-and-forth with the House.
Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/07/business/global/senate-passes-russian-trade-bill-with-conditions.html?_r=0
Sherrie Brown voted for this so it must be better than some others.
"“For too long, both Democratic and Republican administrations have negotiated trade agreements that undermine – rather than maximize – American job creation," Brown said in a statement his office released after the Senate approved the measure 92 to 4. The Russia trade treaty "learns from some of the mistakes of China PNTR and includes enhanced compliance and accountability measures to ensure that Russia meets its commitments—which will help expand export opportunities for American manufacturers and farmers.""
http://mobile.cleveland.com/advcleve/pm_29204/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=I2qHUzYw
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