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  1. Negotiations

US-Thailand


The US and Thailand started negotiations on a comprehensive bilateral free trade agreement in June 2004.

Like other recent bilateral free trade agreements with the US, the US-Thailand FTA will cover investment, services, government procurement, intellectual property, as well as agriculture. Many expect it to be modeled on the US-Singapore FTA.

The negotiations have attracted strong opposition and concern among many Thai social movements, farmers to people with HIV/AIDS. A broad civil society coalition, FTA Watch, was formed at the outset to closely monitor the process from a public interest perspective. (Likewise, business interests set up their own US-Thai FTA Coalition.) Under the banner of "sovereignty not for sale!", key issues of popular concern include access to medicine, GMOs in agriculture and patents on life.

The last round of talks took place in Chiang Mai in January 2006 with 10,000 people protesting in the streets and disrupting the meeting. Negotiations have not resumed since.

last update: May 2012

Thaksin promises FTA details later
9-Jan-2006    
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra reiterated on Monday that the government is ready to reveal the result of negotiations to establish a free trade area (FTA) between Thailand and the United States - in due course.
Thaksin says no to parliamentary debate on FTA
9-Jan-2006     The Nation
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra Monday shot down a proposal for Parliament to debate free trade agreements (FTAs), including a draft being negotiated between Thailand and the United States. "I see no justification for legislative debate on FTAs as Parliament does not have qualified personnel to scrutinise the matter," he said.
10,000 protest US-Thai FTA talks
9-Jan-2006     Bangkok Post
Thousands of Thais representing a diverse swath of society ranging from garlic growers to HIV/AIDS activists gathered outside a hotel in Thailand's northern city of Chiang Mai Monday to protest closed-door talks on a Thai-US free trade agreement (FTA).
FTA protesters' views
9-Jan-2006     The Nation
Rallies against free-trade talks between Thai and US officials today are set to draw a record number of protesters. Here are the reasons for this given by some planning to attend the protests.
PM 'failed to consult the public'
9-Jan-2006     Bangkok Post
The civic sector joined forces against the ongoing Thai-US free trade agreement (FTA) pact by drawing up a petition stating that it does not approve the mandate of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra as being a representative of the Thai people in signing the deal.
PM ignores calls for court to review FTAs
8-Jan-2006    
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday ignored a call by the Senate committee on foreign affairs to seek help from the Constitution Court to review free trade agreements (FTAs) on grounds that they have contravened the constitution.
Government warned of possible impeachment if it bypasses parliament in FTA deal
8-Jan-2006    
The Free Trade Area agreement that Thailand is negotiating with the US has implications on Thailand's sovereignty and if the government bypasses the Parliament in the processing of finalising the agreement, it could be impeached, a veteran lawyer warned.
TDRI warns against US IP rights push
8-Jan-2006    
A leading academic says there is no reason why Thailand should offer terms of intellectual property rights (IPR) protection beyond what's available within the US legal framework.
Democrats join FTA critics
8-Jan-2006    
Members of the opposition Democrat Party Sunday demanded the government to disclose the details of the proposed Thailand-US free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations, charging that Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra had intentionally violated the constitution.
Trade talks: PM flouts Parliament over FTAs
7-Jan-2006    
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday relegated the country's parliamentary governance system to the back seat by saying that his administration did not have to seek prior parliamentary approval for free-trade agreements with foreign nations.

Referenced sites

Citizen's Trade Campaign: US-Thailand FTA

A US campaign website on the Thai-US FTA

FTA Watch

A coalition of activists, lawyers, NGOs, social movements and labour groups monitoring the US-Thailand FTA negotiations.