ISDS Case Map
Qatar
The US hopes to see during this year the beginning of the process to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Qatar, Ambassador Chase Untermeyer told a press conference on Thursday.
Nineteen societies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have rapped moves to normalise relations with Israel and called for joint national and regional efforts to abort the US-initiated Broader Middle East project.
Singapore and Qatar are close to signing a free trade agreement after ending their final round of negotiations yesterday, the city-state’s trade ministry said.
With free trade agreements, come political leverage. Realising this, the United States is moving fast to sign bilateral FTAs with Gulf countries - in the hope that Washington would be able to fill a vacuum because of the slowness of these Arab states in starting any regional trading mechanisms of their own.
Mr. William Lash, U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce, stated to Al-Hayat that "the amount of American investments in the Middle East has reached $90 Billion Dollars". He also revealed that the "American private sector investments in Qatar reached three billion dollars while the rate of trade exchange with Qatar is $800 million dollars."
Singapore and Qatar have moved closer to signing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) following high-level government talks earlier this week.
Members of the US congress expect that a free trade agreement will be signed between the USA and Qatar within one year. Qatar will provide the USA liquid natural gas and will attract direct American investments. However, Washington will set several preconditions before opening the door.
