TIFA between US & Cambodia to raise trade & investment
31 Jul '06
3 min read
USINFO - The United States Department of State announces that the United States and Cambodia have signed a bilateral trade and investment framework agreement (TIFA), the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced July 14.
The agreement, which covers concerns such as intellectual property rights, trade facilitation and customs arrangements, is expected to increase trade and investment between the two countries and to provide a forum for addressing trade-related issues.
"We welcome Cambodia into our family of TIFA partners in Southeast Asia," said Deputy USTR Karan Bhatia, who signed the agreement along with Cambodian Minister of Commerce Cham Prasidh.
The United States has concluded similar bilateral trade and investment agreements in the Southeast Asian region with Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, and the Philippines. It currently is negotiating a regional TIFA agreement with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
According to the USTR's office, the agreement with Cambodia will support the goals of the Bush administration's Enterprise for ASEAN Initiative. That initiative, launched in October 2002, seeks to strengthen U.S. trade and economic ties with ASEAN as a force for stability and development in the Southeast Asian region.
The member countries of ASEAN are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Burma.
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