U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that the U.S. administration supports a bill to repeal the Jackson-Vanik amendment, which currently restricts trade with Central Asian countries.

Rubio made these remarks during a Senate hearing, The Caspian Post reports via C-Span.

He noted that lifting the amendment would open up new opportunities for expanding economic cooperation and allow Washington to build more flexible and deeper partnership formats with the region.

The Jackson-Vanik amendment was adopted by the U.S. Congress in 1974, at the height of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. The legislation imposed high tariffs and trade restrictions on countries that limited their citizens’ right to emigrate. The amendment was named after Senator Henry M. Jackson and Congressman Charles Vanik, who championed its passage.

One of the key triggers for the amendment was the Soviet practice of restricting emigration, particularly affecting Jewish citizens seeking to leave the USSR. Nearly five decades later, U.S. officials say the repeal would reflect changed geopolitical realities and help reset trade relations with Central Asia.