Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman's Radio Address
                                           Release No. 0478.98 

Remarks
                               of
     Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman's Radio Address
                       November 16, 1998

     "Greetings from Kuala Lumpur. I am here in Malaysia's capital with the
Vice President for a meeting of the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation forum
which is made up of political and economic leaders from Pacific Rim countries.
We are bound together by a shared vision of a prosperous community of nations
built on the foundation of free and fair trade. We are here negotiating ways
to strengthen our commitment and expand opportunities for the businesses of
our countries. 

     "Of course, we also are talking about Asia's economic troubles, and what
the United States can do to help some important trade partners revive their
economies and once again become strong customers of U.S. products, including
our farm products.

     "I am here with the Vice President because agricultural trade is high on
the conference agenda. I have been reiterating this Administration's
commitment to Asian markets and to aggressively using USDA export credit
guarantees to ensure that America's farmers and ranchers can continue to sell
U.S. food and fiber to Asian nations. It is important that the U.S. make clear
our rock-solid commitment to being a reliable supplier of food to Asia and the
world. That is especially important for our trading partners to hear now in
the midst of their economic difficulty.

     "Nowhere is the case more clear that the U.S. has a stake in what
happens halfway around the world than in the case of agriculture. A shaky
world economy is one reason why our export growth has stalled in the past
year. Forty percent of our agricultural exports go to Asia, and those are
certainly being hurt right now because strong exports require strong
customers.

     "U.S. farm exports are not likely to renew their rapid growth until we
see Asia renew its own economic growth. So the work of this conference, of the
International Monetary Fund and other efforts are very important to U.S.
agriculture's own economic prospects. That's an important connection for folks
back home to make: what happens in Japan, in Korea, in Russia, in Brazil is
linked to what's happening to our own farm economy. 
                                 
     "After all, the product of one in every three U.S. farm acres is sold
overseas. So expanding free and fair agricultural trade must be a top priority
both for the United States and for countries around the world. That is the
path of opportunity for America's farmers and ranchers, and the path of peace
and prosperity for the world." 
                                 

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