Bilateral Trade Affairs
The Office of Bilateral Trade Affairs (BTA) manages U.S. bilateral trade relations with countries around the world, assisting with the negotiation and implementation of Free Trade Agreements, Trade and Investment Framework Agreements, and trade preference programs. We work closely with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative as well as the Departments of Agriculture, Treasury, Commerce, and Homeland Security. Additionally, we work with Congress, the private sector, academia, and think tanks.
Key initiatives include:
- Seeking Congressional passage of Free Trade Agreements with Panama, Colombia, and Korea;
- Seeking Congressional approval for the Reconstruction Opportunity Zones (ROZ) initiative, a key part of the President’s strategy for stabilizing Afghanistan and Pakistan;
- Promoting the Pathways to Prosperity in the Americas, an initiative to extend the benefits of trade throughout societies in participating Western Hemisphere nations;
- Coordinating the Department's work on the bilateral dialogues like the U.S-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue, the U.S.-Brazil Economic Partnership Dialogue, and the U.S.-Turkey Economic Partnership Commission;
- Supporting the U.S.-E.U. Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC) and the Transatlantic Business Dialogue (TABD);
- Promoting development in Africa through implementation of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act;
- Assisting the U.S. Ambassador to the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum with the Summit, Ministerial, Senior Official, and Committee on Trade and Investment meetings;
- Working to expand trade with the Middle East and North Africa by promoting bilateral and regional cooperation;
- Managing the Economic Empowerment in Strategic Regions (EESR) initiative, which promotes private sector economic development in regions where poverty, unemployment and lack of opportunity fuel support and sympathy for extremism.
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| Office Director: | Robert D. Manogue |
| Contact Info: | Email: ManogueRD@state.gov |
| Phone: (202) 647-3784 | |
| Fax: (202) 647-6540 | |
 | Robert Manogue is the Director of the Office of Bilateral Trade Affairs in the Bureau of Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs. Before joining BTA, Mr. Manogue served in the Economic Section in Embassy Bogota, where he worked on trade issues such as the free trade agreement between the U.S. and Colombia. He also served in the Economic Section of Embassy Lima, working on macroeconomic and money laundering issues. From 1998 to 2005, Mr. Manogue served as an action office in the Bureau, working extensively with the U.S. Congress to pass the Chile and Central American free trade agreements and enhance unilateral preference programs. Prior to joining the State Department, Mr. Manogue worked as an international economist at the Commerce Department. Before entering government service, he worked for Bankers Trust Company and the fashion company Perry Ellis, both in New York. Mr. Manogue holds a BA from St. Lawrence University and an MA from the University of Chicago. |
| Deputy Director: | Amy Holman |
| Contact Info: | Email: Holman AE@state.gov |
| Phone: (202) 647-3784 | |
| Fax: (202) 647-6540 | |
 | Amy Holman is the Deputy Director in the State Department's Office of Bilateral Trade. Prior to her assignment to Washington, she was the Counselor for Economic and Commercial Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan. From 2005 to 2007, Ms. Holman served as the Senior Economist in the Office of Russian Affairs. From 2003 to 2005, she negotiated Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and the Peru and Colombia Free Trade Agreements. Her previous overseas assignments include Brussels, Belgium; Caracas, Venezuela; Lagos, Nigeria; and Lima, Peru. Ms. Holman received her Master's in International Affairs from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University and her bachelor's degree summa cum laude from the University of Michigan and L'Institut d'Etudes Politiques in Strasbourg, France. She speaks French, Spanish and Dutch. |
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