BUSINESS INFORMATION - United States is beginning to lay the main foundation for the establishment of negotiations to forge a free trade agreement (FT

BUSINESS INFORMATION - United States is beginning to lay the main foundation for the establishment of negotiations to forge a free trade agreement (FTA) with South East Asia, ahead of President Barack Obama's visit to the region.

AFP reported that on Tuesday, a senior U.S. senator proposed a resolution that would encourage government officials to initiate talks Obama, and warned about competition with China and other powerful countries, which has signed an agreement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"The U.S. should immediately develop a comprehensive strategy for ASEAN FTA talks are serious," said Senator Dick Lugar, Republican chairman of the commission for the Senate foreign relations which play a major role.

Lugar claimed that trade liberalization effort that would be complex and may contain a challenge to discuss it, because of the various levels of economic development and open market among ASEAN countries.

But he insisted that "China, India, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea has completed its FTA with ASEAN, and sharpen the competition with the U.S. in Southeast Asia".

Trade sanctions are now imposed on Myanmar, the military controlled and is one of the 10 ASEAN member countries, should not hinder U.S. efforts to reach FTAs with other members of ASEAN, including Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore , Thailand and Vietnam, said Lugar.

Lugar resolution encourages the U.S. Trade Representative's office (USTR) to pursue a free trade agreement, which is expected to attract the support of senators from the Democratic party, said sources at the congress.

Obama will hold his first official summit with the leaders of 10 ASEAN member when he was in Singapore to attend the forum Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in mid-November.

Change the current U.S. policy on contacts with Myanmar, with a high-level talks with junta officials, but warned that it would not revoke the sanction until democracy is practiced in the country.

"Obama may meet with ASEAN leaders in Singapore. This will reflect the importance of US-ASEAN relations," said Lugar.

According to the resolution, a copy obtained by AFP, it is an annual trade reciprocal US-ASEAN overall worth 180 billion U.S. dollars.

In 2006, Lugar was also proposed and received approval from the legislature on the establishment of the U.S. ambassador's position in ASEAN, and Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush, was chosen as ambassador in 2008.

U.S. currently has the Basic Agreement of Trade and Investment 9TIFA) with ASEAN, which is seen as a pioneer of free trade pact in full.

Southeast Asia, with a population of 560 million, is the fifth largest trading partner in the U.S. Canada, Mexico, China and the European Union.

American exports to the region grew steadily to 68.4 billion dollars in 2008, about the same as U.S. exports to China, and three times larger than U.S. exports to India, according to data from the Council US-ASEAN trade.

In the economic sector, China's trade with the region showing an increase 20-fold between 2003 to 2008, reaching 179 billion U.S. dollars. While the U.S. only tripled, according to ASEAN data.

However, the U.S. has the largest number of shares of total ASEAN trade than China.

U.S. now has free trade agreements with Singapore and is holding negotiations with Malaysia, to the same treaty vehicles .