Murphy Meets with Tunisian Ambassador to Welcome New Government, Announces Bipartisan Effort with Senator Graham to Enact U.S.-Tunisia Free Trade Agreement

Statement

U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), the top Democrat on the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near East, South Asia, Central Asia and Counterterrorism, on Monday met with the Ambassador of Tunisia, Faycal Gouia, to welcome the new government formed in February, and announced a bipartisan effort with U.S. Senator Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.) to enact a U.S.-Tunisia free trade agreement:

"Amid so much democratic backsliding around the world, continued progress in Tunisia's democratic transition is a bright spot. As I told Ambassador Gouia in our meeting today, the United States should reward countries like Tunisia that are continuing to move in the right direction, and bipartisan legislation calling for a trade agreement between our two countries does precisely that. If passed, this measure would be a strong symbol of U.S. support for the only democracy to emerge from the Arab Spring. A new free trade agreement that protects labor rights would help Tunisia's struggling economy by expanding market access, encouraging Tunisia to continue its governance and market reforms while opening new markets to U.S. exporters," said Murphy.

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