Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos on Wednesday said a Colombia-U.S. free trade agreement (FTA) would serve as a "fundamental element" in boosting bilateral strategic relations.

Santos said he was confident that the agreement, currently being discussed in the U.S. Congress, would soon receive legal approval, when he was attending an inauguration of the U.S. company Proctor and Gamble's distribution center in north Colombia's Antioquia province.

The president said "the agreement is a fundamental part of our future strategic relations, which we want to further strengthen."

The Colombia-U.S. FTA was signed as early as in 2006, but failed to be approved by the U.S. Congress due to a lack of bipartisan consensus.