The State Department signaled Tuesday that it’s not in any hurry to negotiate a free trade agreement with Britain, despite that country’s vote last week to leave the European Union.
State Department spokesman Mark Toner was asked if he agrees with House Speaker Paul Ryan that a free trade deal should be a priority, since Britain won’t benefit from trade preferences that the EU currently enjoys with the U.S. once it leaves the EU. But Toner indicated a free trade deal isn’t on the front burner in the Obama administration.
“First off, what I think is most important to speak to is stability, stability in the process going forward, and stability that extends to financial markets,” he said.
“In terms of trade and investment arrangements in the EU and across the Trans-Atlantic community, those aren’t going to change overnight,” he added. “But we believe that the U.K. and the EU can, deliberatively and in a productive way, negotiate forward to ensure that trade and investment can ensure their mutual prosperity.”
The Obama administration has so far not been specific about the idea of a separate deal with Britain. The day after the vote to leave the EU, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said the issue was still being examined, and said USTR is first examining how the vote might affect the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, which is still being negotiated.
“We are evaluating the impact of the United Kingdom’s decision on T-TIP and look forward to continuing our engagement with the European Union and our relations with the United Kingdom,” Froman said.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misidentified Mark Toner’s position within the State Department. The Washington Examiner regrets the error.
