白宫宣布将分别与英国、欧盟和日本就贸易协议进行谈判的计划。
美国贸易代表莱特希泽说：“我们将争取尽早完成谈判，为美国工人、牧场主和公司带来实际利益。”
他还说，白宫希望“解决贸易关税及非关税壁垒，实现更公平、更平衡的贸易”。
莱特希泽依照法律要求，将白宫有意开始贸易谈判的三份函件分别递交给国会。他在函件中说，英国预计3月29日正式脱欧，此后只要英国做好准备，与英国的谈判将立即开始。
莱特希泽说，美国和欧盟的经济伙伴关系是世界上最大、最复杂的关系。他提到美国对欧盟的1510亿美元贸易逆差。
在有关与日本进行贸易谈判的函件中，莱特希泽说，日本是美国出口产品的重要市场，但实际贸易状况往往不尽人意。他也提到美国对日本的巨额贸易逆差。
来自俄勒冈州的参议院金融委员会资深民主党成员怀登表示，希望特朗普行政当局不要达成他所说的“仓促、不完整的协议”。他说：“行政当局必须全面解决贸易壁垒的问题，包括利用这个机会在劳工权利、环境保护以及网络贸易等方面制定高标准。”
特朗普总统今年对欧盟出口到美国的钢铝产品加征关税。他还威胁要对欧盟的汽车加征关税，因为那些不公平的协议使美国处于劣势。
The White House has announced plans to negotiate separate trade deals with Britain, the European Union and Japan.
“We are committed to concluding these negotiations with timely and substantive results for American workers, farmers, ranchers and businesses,” U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said Tuesday.
He added that the White House wanted to “address both tariff and non-tariff barriers and to achieve fairer and more balanced trade.”
As required by law, Lighthizer sent three separate letters to Congress announcing the intention to open trade talks.
He wrote that the negotiations with Britain would begin “as soon as it’s ready” after Britain’s expected exit from the European Union on March 29.
Lighthizer called the economic partnership between the U.S. and EU the “largest and most complex”in the world, noting the U.S. has a $151 billion trade deficit with the EU
Writing about Japan, Lighthizer said it is “an important but still often underperforming market for U.S. exporters of goods,” noting that Washington also has a large trade deficit with Tokyo.
The top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, Oregon’s Ron Wyden, cautioned the administration against making what he called “quick, partial deals.”
“The administration must take the time to tackle trade barriers comprehensively, including using this opportunity to set a high bar in areas like labor rights, environmental protection and digital trade,” he said.
President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on European steel and aluminum exports earlier this year and has threatened more tariffs on cars as a reaction to what he said were unfair deals that put the U.S. at a disadvantage.