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Klobuchar Urges Russian Ambassador to Honor Trade Agreement on U.S. Poultry
August 31, 2010
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and 29 other senators sent a letter to Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak today urging Russia to honor its previous commitment to allow U.S. poultry exports access to Russian markets. Following a bilateral meeting in June, U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev announced an agreement that would reopen Russian markets to U.S. poultry products. However, according to U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk, Russia has recently backed out of this agreement.
“The June agreement to reopen Russian markets to U.S. poultry exports was a welcome development, and now Russia has an obligation to honor this commitment,” Klobuchar said. “U.S. poultry products have been denied access to Russia for too long, and we will continue to push the Russian government until these unwarranted trade barriers are removed.”
Prior to the meeting between President Obama and President Medvedev, Klobuchar and 24 other senators sent a letter to President Obama urging him to address the Russian trade barriers facing U.S. poultry products.
Over the last three years, U.S. poultry exports to Russia averaged more than $800 million in value, making Russia the single-largest U.S. export market. The poultry industry represents over 500,000 jobs in the United States.
Klobuchar is a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee and is the chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Competitiveness, Innovation, and Export Promotion.
Full text of the letter is below.
August 30, 2010
His Excellency Sergey I. Kislyak
Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the U.S.
2650 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20007
Dear Ambassador Kislyak,
As members from poultry-producing states throughout the United States, we are writing to express our deep concern with respect to Russia’s failure to honor its recent commitment to allow U.S. poultry products back into Russia.
It was our understanding that President Obama and President Medvedev came to an agreement in June of this year to allow U.S. poultry imports into Russia. However, Russia has failed to implement the agreement.
Russia is a valuable trading partner to the poultry producers in our states. These actions are a set back to our countries’ trade relations.
We ask you to honor the commitment our two presidents made less than two months ago and implement the agreement without further delay.
We thank you for your attention to this important matter that affects, not just our constituents, but the citizens of Russia as well.
Sincerely,
Senator Tom Carper
Senator Amy Klobuchar
Senator Al Franken
Senator Christopher Bond
Senator Barbara Boxer
Senator Sherrod Brown
Senator Richard Burr
Senator Roland Burris
Senator Benjamin Cardin
Senator Bob Casey
Senator Thad Cochran
Senator John Cornyn
Senator Dianne Feinstein
Senator Chuck Grassley
Senator Kay Hagan
Senator Tom Harkin
Senator Johnny Isakson
Senator Mike Johanns
Senator Ted Kaufman
Senator Mary Landrieu
Senator Richard Lugar
Senator Claire McCaskill
Senator Barbara Mikulski
Senator Mark Pryor
Senator Jeff Sessions
Senator Debbie Stabenow
Senator John Thune
Senator George Voinovich
Senator Mark Warner
Senator Jim Webb
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