U.S.-U.K. Trade Challenges
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson. President Biden and the UK announced a research and investment deal that came up well-short of a long-awaited announcement on full-scale free trade negotiations.
It was not the comprehensive trade deal US farm groups were hoping for …
BIDEN … “We’ve launched negotiations on critical materials and an agreement to deal with climate crisis, number one. Number two, cooperating on data and AI.”
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak refuted claims the Atlantic Declaration is an admission of failure on free trade …
SUNAK … “It means stronger supply chains, with a new action plan on clean energy, and it means reducing trade barriers in the technologies of the future, with a new, secure U.S.-UK data bridge, helping tens of thousands of small businesses.”
But agriculture, according to USDA Under Secretary Alexis
Taylor, remains a stumbling block …
TAYLOR … “We have seen some positive outcomes as they are wrapping their arms around regulation of gene-edited technologies. But there continue to be, I think, philosophical differences with our partners in the UK, that we continue to engage with them on.”
This latest announcement exposes President Biden’s reluctance on politically difficult trade deals that Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack calls unpopular outside U.S. ag.
