Colombia head discusses US trade (BBC News)

(This is such a wierd headline, anyone have a picture of a "Columbian Head"?)

Friday, 17 February 2006, 03:32 GMT

Colombia head discusses US trade

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has met President Bush at the White House in Washington to discuss on-going free trade negotiations.


Both presidents hope trade deals will help to fight the drugs war

Trade talks between the two countries have reached a crucial stage. Mr Uribe is leading the Colombian team personally, but differences remain over agricultural issues.

The US sees trade as a way of creating new jobs to fight Colombia's drugs trade which accounts for much of the US's cocaine supply. President Bush described the meeting as "difficult" but said he was hopeful.

"Trade agreements are never easy and that's what's very important to understand, " he said. Mr Uribe said success would depend on a push from both sides. "We have been negotiating an FTA (free trade agreement) for the last 23 months. All of us have come to this negotiation in good faith and I'm sure that we will see a conclusion," he said.

The main differences are over agriculture. The US wants greater access to Colombia's markets such as rice and poultry, whereas Colombia wants the US to make its health control for farm products less stringent.

(more at link below)

<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4722580.stm>

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