Heine Interviewed on U.S.-Chilean Treaty
At the end of June, the US Senate advanced a tax treaty with Chile which passed with an astounding vote of 97-2. Although the treaty won’t go into effect unless President Joe Biden signs it, the Latin America Advisor interviewed three experts to follow up with their thoughts and predictions on the treaty. These scholars were asked, “What are the most important provisions of the treaty? How critical is it to U.S. and Chilean business interests? Which industries would benefit the most?”
As a former Chile ambassador to China, Ambassador Jorge Heine, Research Professor at Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies and Interim Director of the Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future, was one of the experts asked to participate in the interview.
Ambassador Heine states that a US-Chile treaty is an important step to strengthen the relations between the US and Latin American countries. Currently, Mexico is the only country with a treaty and he’s hoping this will pave the way for more similar treaties. Heine states that if this treaty is signed, the treaty should facilitate bilateral trade and investment flows and give greater legal certainty to business deals.
Ambassador Heine continues his response by highlighting that this treaty was originally signed by Chile in 2010 and ratified in 2015, but is just being ratified by the US Senate now. Heine attributes this to the fact that Chile has had a treaty with China since 2017 and US companies now have a disadvantage over Chinese counterparts.
Heine concludes the interview by mentioning:
An obvious lesson for the region from this action by the U.S. Senate is that a proactive engagement with China by Latin American countries strengthens rather than weakens their bargaining position vis-a-vis the United States and can unblock U.S. legislation to further their interests.
Read the full article here.
Ambassador Jorge Heine is a Research Professor at the Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University. He has served as ambassador of Chile to China (2014-2017), to India (2003-2007), and to South Africa (1994-1999), and as a Cabinet Minister in the Chilean Government. Read more about Ambassador Heine on his Pardee School faculty profile.