Ecuador and the U.S. say a major trade agreement is near; Military reconsiders press rules; Noboa’s ADN party reverses Godoy impeachment position

Negotiators for Ecuador and the United States announced Friday that a trade agreement between the two countries will be signed soon. The Reciprocal Trade Agreement (ART) eliminates or reduces tariffs on hundreds of products, they say.

Ecuador will see tariffs eliminated on seafood and agricultural products including tuna, cut flowers, bananas, coffee, avocados, mangos, blueberries, mangos and rice. Tariffs will also be reduced on mined metals.

Tariffs will be eliminated or reduced for hundreds of Ecuadorian experts under a new trade agreement with the U.S.

According to the Minister of Production and Trade Luis Alberto Jaramillo, the bilateral agreement “establishes a framework for economic cooperation and market access,” and strengthens relations between Ecuador and the U.S. “For Ecuador, the agreement provides stability for commercial operations and their employees, stabilizing previously uncertain conditions,” he said.

According to the Association of Ecuador Exports, the agreement provides an advantage for Ecuadorian products over those of neighboring Colombia.

Military reconsiders press rules
Ecuador’s Joint Military Command said Saturday it is reviewing rules issued earlier in the week that the news media report only “positive news” about the armed forces. The rules were widely condemned as an attack on freedom of speech by national and international press organizations.

The joint command acknowledged the right of the press to report the news “without barriers” but said all decisions on press access would be considered within “the framework of Ecuador’s internal armed conflict.”

“Each of the armed forces, of land, naval and air, must review media rules based on interests of particular operations in cooperation with the Joint Command,” the statement read. “Within these parameters, there will be no explicit restrictions on the freedom to report the news.”

Noboa’s party reverses impeachment position
Leaders of the National Democratic Action (ADN) say the party now supports the impeachment of Mario Godoy, president of the Council of the Judiciary. The ADN, including President Daniel Noboa, had earlier opposed impeachment, saying Godoy deserved only a censure.

On Friday, the National Assembly’s Oversight Commission unanimously approved the report that recommends Godoy’s impeachment. Assembly President Niels Olsen said the issue will be taken up by the full Assembly on Wednesday.

In defending its support for impeachment, ADN’s Ferdinan Álvarez denied that the party was agreeing with Citizens Revolution’s impeachment position. “We arrived at this as a result of testimony delivered to the commission and are not bowing to Correista pressure,” he said.

Citizens Revolution’s Xavier Lasso claims that ADN had no choice but to favor impeachment and dismissal of Godoy. “Otherwise, they would be clearly linked to the interests of drug traffickers, as was Godoy,” Lasso said. “They have worked themselves into a pretzel denying the facts that RC presented from the beginning. I am glad they finally see the light of day.”