Just as the fight to ease President Obama’s Trans-Pacific Partnership into action gets underway in the House, Secretary of State John Kerry said the administration believes trade agreements play a fundamental role in national security.
The two are intrinsically linked, Kerry said, making trade deals well worth the effort.
“Trade issues cannot be separated from larger questions about America’s global leadership,” Kerry said. “If we retreat on trade, our influence on the global economy will diminish.
“And if our economic stature is in doubt, our ability to deliver on defense and political challenges will be increasingly questioned. In our era, the economic and security realms are absolutely integrated.”
Speaking at the launch of the Atlantic Council’s new trade and national security initiative Thursday, Kerry said that the TPP and its sister agreement, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, will help secure the sort of cooperation the U.S. needs to combat global threats.
“It is no secret that we have reached a very fluid state in global affairs,” Kerry said. “This turbulence that we are witnessing comes from a combination of factors … from the fact that even as the world grows closer, there are powerful forces driving us apart. These include terrorism, but also extreme nationalism [and] conflicts over resources.”
Economic cooperation breeds more cooperation in general, Kerry said, and leads to growth.
The TPP aims to improve trade between 12 Pacific countries, with North American, South American, Asian and Australian membership. TTIP is a proposed free trade deal between Europe and the U.S., and is still under negotiation.
America’s top diplomat said new global supply chains have created unprecedented opportunities, while establishing “winning connections” worldwide. “In fact, the economic case for TPP and TTIP is actually overwhelming, and I’ve argued a lot of cases over the course of my public career,” he said.
“TTIP will reinforce our common effort to counter violent extremism, support the sovereignty of Ukraine, build energy security and independence … [and] help us address global problems such as nuclear proliferation and climate change,” Kerry said, adding that through TTP, the U.S. will have access to the combined economic muscle of America and Europe.
Reflecting on the trade agreements of the 20th century, Kerry praised them for what they were. But he said 21st-century problems require a different approach — one that is both broader and freer — although the need for a strong U.S. hasn’t changed.
“We are living in a wholly different world, except for one thing: the need for American leadership,” he said.
With the support of Sens. Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., the Senate Finance Committee passed a fast-track trade bill Wednesday that would give Obama authority to present trade agreements to Congress on a pass-fail basis. This means Congress would have to take them as they stand, without power to make amendments.
Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee, is currently working to move a similar bill through the House. If passed by Congress, Obama is expected to use this authority to push his full TPP agenda into action.