U.S. President Barack Obama is under pressure to swiftly send the free trade agreements with South Korea, Columbia and Panama to Congress.

In an interview with Reuters, Republican Senator Rob Portman said he hopes Obama will vow to send the FTAs to Congress for approval.

Portman, who was the chief trade negotiator of the U.S. under the George Bush administration, launched FTA talks with Seoul in 2006.

Speaking to Reuters, Portman said that opening exports markets for U.S. goods is critical to fighting high unemployment in the U.S.

He also called on the administration and Congress to promptly ratify the FTAs. He said he will submit a bill urging Congress to grant Obama the fast track negotiating authority called the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) which expired in 2007.

The TPA allows the Congress to give full rights to the administration regarding trade agreements and to approve or reject the agreements without revising the deals.