Max Baucus: “in 1833, a merchant named Edmund Roberts piloted the U.S. warship Peacock to the port of Muscat, the capital of today's…”

“in 1833, a merchant named Edmund Roberts piloted the U.S. warship Peacock to the port of Muscat, the capital of today's Oman. Roberts bore a letter from President Andrew Jackson to the Sultan Said. Three days later, Roberts and the Sultan signed a Treaty of Amity and Commerce. This was the first treaty between America and Oman, 1833. That treaty with Oman was part of a bigger picture, of course. That bigger picture included Siam, today's Thailand, and Cochin China, today's Vietnam. Edmund Roberts also traveled to those countries to initiate broader commercial ties. Today we are considering implementing legislation for another treaty with Oman, a free-trade agreement. Today I ask again, what is the bigger picture? From where I stand, the bigger picture is a grim one. It is a picture colored by resentment, frustration, and broken promises. This agreement, as others in the past, will be overshadowed by the unfair process by which the agreement was considered. The substance of the Oman agreement, like others, is largely good. The Omanis have made real progress in liberalizing their economy, ensuring their markets are open and fair, and improving their labor laws to meet internationally recognized norms. Yet the memories of this agreement that will linger will not be tariffs, labor laws, or intellectual property rights protection.…”