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[House Document 108-201]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

                                     

108th Congress, 2d Session - - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 108-201

 
             THE UNITED STATES-MOROCCO FREE TRADE AGREEMENT

                               __________

                                MESSAGE

                                  from

                   THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              transmitting

 A DRAFT OF PROPOSED LEGISLATION AND SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS TO IMPLEMENT 
          THE UNITED STATES-MOROCCO FREE TRADE AGREEMENT (FTA)

    July 19, 2004.--Message and accompanying papers referred to the 
         Committee on Ways and Means and ordered to be printed
To the Congress of the United States:
    I am pleased to transmit legislation and supporting 
documents prepared by my Administration to implement the United 
States-Morocco Free Trade Agreement (the ``Agreement'' or the 
``FTA''). This Agreement enhances our bilateral relationship 
with a longstanding partner in the North Africa and Middle East 
region. The Agreement will benefit the people of the United 
States and Morocco, illustrating to other developing countries 
the advantages of open markets.
    This Agreement is a strong demonstration of my 
Administration's commitment to opening markets, leveling the 
playing field, and expanding opportunities for American 
workers, manufacturers, businesses, farmers, and consumers. In 
negotiating this Agreement, my Administration was guided by the 
negotiating objectives set out in the Trade Act of 2002. The 
Agreement will expand Morocco's market for U.S. manufactured 
goods, agricultural products, services, and investment. As soon 
as this Agreement enters into force, tariffs will be eliminated 
on virtually all manufactured goods traded between our 
countries.
    The Agreement provides U.S. producers of beef, poultry, 
wheat, corn, soybeans, and other agriculture products with 
increased access to Morocco's market, while complementing 
Morocco's agriculture reform program. In addition, the 
Agreement provides the opportunity for U.S. producers to adjust 
to increased imports from Morocco, if necessary.
    New opportunities for U.S. services firms will be opened, 
U.S. investments will be protected, and U.S. companies will be 
able to participate in government procurement opportunities on 
the same basis as Moroccan firms. This Agreement has some of 
the strongest intellectual property protections ever contained 
in a U.S. trade agreement with a developing country.
    The United States and Morocco have agreed to cooperate on 
environment and labor issues and to establish mechanisms 
supporting those efforts. Negotiation of this Agreement has 
promoted adoption of a new labor law in Morocco. This Agreement 
has also helped lead to improved domestic environmental laws in 
Morocco, and a number of additional cooperative projects have 
been identified for future work.
    The approval of this Agreement will be another important 
step in implementing our plan for a broader Middle East Trade 
Area. Indeed, this Agreement offers the United States an 
opportunity to encourage economic reform in a moderate Muslim 
nation, as we have done with the Jordan FTA and the recently 
concluded Bahrain FTA. Leaders in Morocco support a reformist 
and tolerant vision that includes free parliamentary elections, 
the sale of state-owned businesses, the encouragement of 
foreign investment that can be connected to broad-based 
development, and better protection of the rights of women and 
workers. It is strongly in the interests of the United States 
to embrace these reforms and do what we can to encourage them. 
Passing this Agreement is a critical step in that direction.

                                                    George W. Bush.
    The White House, July 15, 2004.

                                  
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