Obama says pleased with progress on Panama trade pact

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Thursday he expects Congress to pass a U.S.-Panamanian free trade deal that he plans to send to U.S. lawmakers as part of a wider package on trade, but gave no details on timing.

"My expectation is that as part of a broader trade package that we're going to be presenting to Congress, that we're going to be able to get this done," he said after a White House meeting with Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli.

The pact would tie Panama's largely service-based economy even closer to the United States, which has been deeply involved in the country for over a century because of its role in building the Panama Canal.

"We are very pleased by the progress we've made in moving forward a U.S.-Panamanian free trade agreement," Obama told reporters in the Oval Office.

The trade agreement with Panama is one of three left over from the administration of former President George W. Bush, along with pacts with Colombia and South Korea.

Republicans want President Barack Obama to send all three agreements to Congress so they can be approved by July 1.

Action on the three pacts has become linked largely because of Republican concern the White House might abandon the Colombia pact, the most controversial due to concerns about anti-union violence raised by U.S. labor groups.

The top U.S. trade official said on Thursday that Congress needs to renew a retraining program for American workers who have lost jobs due to foreign competition to marshal the votes needed to approve the three pending free-trade agreements.

"Passing trade adjustment assistance is critical," U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said in a speech. "For us, it has to be right up there with the three FTAs," he said.

(Reporting by Alister Bull and Doug Palmer; editing by Anthony Boadle)