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Nine countries, Montana pledge to work on economic ties

Representatives of nine nations agreed Friday to work toward closer economic ties with Montana, but a Japanese official stopped short of indicating when his country might end a restriction on imports of beef, a leading Montana product.

By SUSAN GALLAGHER Associated Press Writer

http://missoulian.com/articles/2004/08/06/mtracker/news/10trade.txt

The international delegation is on a visit led by Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont. He said the four days in Montana are part of an effort to build the relationships essential for broader trade opportunities.

At the Capitol, representatives of the state and the nine countries signed a "declaration of economic friendship and cooperation," stating their desire to advance relationships and seek closer economic connections. The countries are Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Taiwan, Indonesia, New Zealand and Australia.

Responding to a reporter’s question, Kojiro Shiojiri, deputy chief of mission at the Japanese embassy in Washington, D.C., said his country has studied issues surrounding its ban on U.S. beef imports, but he did not indicate whether an end to the prohibition is near.

"In Japan we have a saying: "After it rains the ground becomes firmer and stronger," Shiojiri said. The country has been working hard to resolve the beef issue, he said.

Japan, which used to be the United States’ largest export market for beef, imposed the ban after mad cow disease was found in an animal last December, in the state of Washington.

Baucus, who has led many trade missions to Asia, was in Japan in March and urged removal of the ban. Scientists have found U.S. beef safe, and resolving the import issue soon is critical to relations between the United States and Japan, he said Friday as he stood with the delegation.

Japan earlier demanded a level of beef testing that U.S. officials said was unreasonable.

Japan began testing all cows for bovine spongiform encephalopathy, mad cow disease, after the country saw an outbreak of its own in 2001. Consuming brain or spinal tissue from a diseased cow is thought to cause Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, fatal in humans.

State officials at the Capitol ceremony Friday included some members of Gov. Judy Martz’s Cabinet and Lt. Gov. Karl Ohs. Martz was not present because she had a prior commitment, her staff said.

Calling Southeast Asia the world’s growth area, Baucus said it is "incumbent upon us, as Montanans, to develop strong relationships with those countries."

Baucus is the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, which signs off on trade agreements. The United States and Australia recently agreed on a major reduction in tariffs, one reason Australia Ambassador Michael Thawley came here this week.

Baucus plans to lead a Montana delegation to Australia in December, and Thawley said he is confident the group will find business opportunities there. Australia will work "to ensure that the senator’s delegation will bring back some bacon," the ambassador said.

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