[Federal Register: September 16, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 179)]
[Notices]
[Page 54259-54261]
>From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr16se03-90]
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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Request for Public Comment on the Implications for U.S.
Commercial Interests of the Accession to the European Union of Poland,
Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia,
Lithuania, Cyprus and Malta (Accession Countries)
AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.
ACTION: Request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The Trade Policy Staff Committee gives notice that the Office
of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) requests written
submissions from the public concerning the implications for U.S. trade
in goods and services of the anticipated May 2004 enlargement of the
European Union (EU) to include Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic,
Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Cyprus and Malta
(accession countries).
USTR and other agencies are currently engaged in an assessment of
the potential impact on U.S. goods and services trade of the May 2004
enlargement of the EU and, in particular, of what compensation the EU
may owe to the United States under WTO rules. Comments from the public
in response to this notice will be incorporated into that assessment.
DATES: Submissions must be received on or before noon, October 16,
2003.
ADDRESSES: Submissions by Electronic Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Submissions
by facsimile: Gloria Blue, Executive Secretary, Trade Policy Staff
Committee
[[Page 54260]]
(TPSC), Office of the USTR, at (202) 395-6143.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For procedural questions concerning
public comments, contact Gloria Blue, Executive Secretary, TPSC, Office
of the USTR, 1724 F Street, NW., Washington, DC 20508, telephone (202)
395-3475. Substantive questions concerning this review should be
addressed to Mark Mowrey, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative
for Europe and the Mediterranean, Telephone (202) 395-3320.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Background Information
On April 16, 2003, Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia,
Slovenia, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Malta and Cyprus signed a Treaty
of Accession to the European Union. Following ratification of the
Treaty by current EU member States and by the acceding countries, the
acceding countries are expected to join the EU formally on May 1, 2004.
As part of the EU accession process, the accession countries are
required to adopt the EU's common body of law or acquis communautaire.
This will entail, inter alia, adoption by the accession countries of
the EU's common external tariffs for goods imported from third
countries, possible adoption or alteration by the accession countries
of tariff rate quotas (TRQs) on various products (to make them
compatible with EU TRQs), and harmonization of accession country
regulatory requirements with EU regulations affecting the import of
various good and services.
Under WTO rules, the EU must notify other WTO members of its intent
to modify or withdraw market access commitments it has made on goods
and services in order to expand the EU to include the accession
countries. To date, the EU has not sent such notifications to the WTO,
though the United States expects these to be made promptly.
Goods
Applicable GATT 1994 Procedures: If a WTO Member joining a customs
union plans to raise a duty rate on a product which is bound in its WTO
Schedule of concessions (a ``tariff concession''), it may renegotiate
the tariff concession on that product under Article XXIV:6 of the
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (``GATT 1994'') and the
procedures of GATT 1994 Article XXVIII. This renegotiation may result
in the provision of compensation (for example, reduction of duties on
other products) that is no less favorable to trade than the original
tariff concession.
Submissions: The public is encouraged to identify on a country-
specific basis where the accession countries' adoption of the EU common
external tariff will result in tariff increases or changes to tariff-
rate quotas (TRQs) affecting U.S. commercial interests in the accession
countries. The accession countries also will likely alter their TRQs to
bring them more into line with EU TRQs. The public also is asked to
evaluate the potential for: (1) Changes to current TRQs in terms of
rates or volume of the TRQ; (2) the loss of existing TRQs in the
accession countries; or (3) the imposition of new TRQs where they do
not currently exist in the accession countries.
Current tariff rates for the EU and Malta and Cyprus can be
obtained by calling the Department of Commerce's Trade Information
Center at 1-800-USA-TRADE. Alternatively, the EU common external tariff
schedule can be accessed at
http://www.trade.gov/td/tic/tariff/eu_schedule/index.htm.
Tariff rates for Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania,
Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia can be obtained by
calling the Central and Eastern Europe Business Information Center
(CEEBIC) at (202) 482-2645.
Services
Applicable GATS Procedures: Article V, paragraph 5, of the General
Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) provides that if a WTO Member
intends to modify or withdraw a specific GATS commitment as a result of
joining an economic integration agreement such as a customs union, it
must provide 90 days advance notice of such modification and follow the
applicable procedures set out in GATS Article XXI. Paragraph 2 of
Article XXI provides that WTO Members who believe they may be affected
by the proposed modification of commitments can request negotiations
with the modifying Member with the purpose of reaching an agreement on
compensation for the proposed modification.
The accession countries' joining of the EU may also entail
modification of the exiting lists of MFN exemptions maintained by the
EU or the accession countries under GATS Article II. The United States
maintains that the EU must engage through a separate WTO process
(namely a waiver process under Article IX of the Agreement Establishing
the WTO) with its partners in cases where modifications to MFN
exemption lists are contemplated. However, comments from the public on
anticipated trade impacts implied by a consolidation of the existing
accession country and EU MFN exemptions lists are also solicited
through this notice.
Submissions: The public is advised to examine the existing GATS
schedules of specific commitments and lists of most-favored-nation
exemptions of the EU in comparison with those of Poland, Hungary, Czech
Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Malta and
Cyprus to determine whether changes implied through consolidation of
the schedules and lists would adversely impact U.S. commercial
interests. The existing schedules and lists are accessible through the
WTO's Services Database Web site, http://tsdb.wto.org/wto/WTOHomepublic.htm.
From that site, click on ``Pre-defined Reports'' and
then ``All Sectors in Each Country.''
Other regulatory measures
Adoption of the EU acquis communautaire by the accession countries
will entail adoption of the EU's standards, regulations and conformity
assessment procedures, including sanitary and phytosanitary
requirements, testing, certification, labeling requirements, etc. The
accession countries will also be obligated to impose import
restrictions, quantitative restrictions and antidumping orders similar
to those of the EU. The public is encouraged to comment where
appropriate on how the introduction of these types of regulatory
measures would affect U.S. commercial interests.
Supportive Data and Recommendations for Compensation
All submissions should describe the product or service in question,
and in the case of products, should include the Harmonized System
tariff heading(s). Submissions should describe the current market
access for the products or services, including value and quantity of
exports, any existing problems, and should identify changes that are
anticipated upon accession countries' entry into the EU.
Submissions may also include recommendations for appropriate
compensation the United States might seek for instances of diminished
market access. These recommendations could include such items as
reductions in the EU common external tariff on goods, improvements to
EU market access commitments on goods and services, or other changes in
the EU trade regime for goods and services.
2. Requirements for Submissions
To ensure prompt and full consideration of responses, USTR
[[Page 54261]]
strongly recommends that interested persons submit comments by
electronic mail to the following e-mail address: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Persons making submissions by e-mail should use the following subject
line: ``May 2004 EU Enlargement.'' Documents should be submitted in
WordPerfect, MSWord, or text (.TXT) files. Supporting documentation
submitted as spreadsheets is acceptable in Quattro Pro or Excel format.
For any document containing business confidential information submitted
electronically, the file name of the business confidential version
should begin with the characters ``BC-'', and the file name of the
public version should begin with the character ``P-''. The ``P-'' or
``BC-'' should be followed by the name of the submitted information.
Persons who make submissions by e-mail should not provide separate
cover letters; information that might appear in a cover letter should
be included in the submission itself. To the extent possible, any
attachments to the submission should be included in the same file as
the submission itself, and not as separate files.
Written submissions will be placed in a file open to public
inspection pursuant to 15 CFR 2003.5, except confidential business
information exempt from public inspection in accordance with 15 CFR
2003.6 must be clearly marked ``Business Confidential'' at the top of
each page, including any cover letter or cover page, and must be
accompanied by a non-confidential summary of the confidential
information. All public documents and non-confidential summaries will
be available for public inspection in the USTR Reading Room in Room 3
of the Annex of the Office of the USTR, 1724 F Street, NW., Washington,
DC 20508. An appointment to review the file may be made by calling
(202) 395-6186. The USTR Reading Room is generally open to the public
from 10 a.m.-12 noon and 1-4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Appointments
must be scheduled at least 48 hours in advance.
Carmen Suro-Bredie,
Chairperson, Trade Policy Staff Committee.
[FR Doc. 03-23571 Filed 9-15-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-01-P
