Document Type

Article

Disciplines

International Law

Abstract

This Article first addresses the differing Democratic and Republican approaches to trade and the environment. The Article traces the history and support for such positions and identifies their significance for the Chilean negotiations. The Article reviews how such positions were addressed in the NAFTA negotiations and in the debate concerning the Clinton Administration's proposal for extension of fast-track negotiating authority, 2 which held up submission of the GATT implementing legislation for several months and ultimately failed. The Article asserts that both sides focus too heavily on ideological issues without addressing the current realities of trade negotiations. Both sides need to recognize that the basic policy parameters of the trade and environment issue have been settled by NAFTA, and are unlikely to change significantly now in light of the vested interests many stakeholders have in preventing modification of the entry requirements. We conclude that it is in the national interest for Congressional partisans to agree to disagree on this issue for the purposes of Chilean accession, and not allow their desire for theological debate to derail a promising initiative of long-term benefit to the promotion of democracy and hemispheric stability.

The Article next focuses on Chile and traces the arguments in favor of free trade between the United States and Chile. The article sets out the environmental issues of greatest concern in Chile and the steps the Chilean Government has taken to respond to these issues in preparation for the accession negotiations.

The Article then analyzes how U.S. policy and the Chilean environmental situation will impact the negotiations concerning Chile's accession to NAFTA. The Article suggests that Chile accede to NAFTA as it now stands, including accession to the supplemental environmental arrangements negotiated by the Clinton Administration. Separate non-NAFTA related negotiations on specific issues appear to present the best opportunity to address both U.S. and Chilean environmental concerns. To do otherwise would unnecessarily complicate the negotiations and risk Congressional disapproval of Chilean accession. United States-Mexico bilateral agreements and agreements between the United States and Latin American nations, including Chile, under the Enterprise for the Americas Initiative provide models for how these environmental concerns should be resolved. Under these models, both countries can assure that their respective environments are well-protected. Unlike imposing strict environmental requirements as terms of Chilean entry into NAFrA, these models provide no affront to Chilean sovereignty and would not force Chile to assume excessive costs, and thereby affect its economic interest in pursuing the agreement.

Accessibility Requirements

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