TRADE NEWS BULLETIN Volume 2 Number 162 Tuesday, September 14, 1993 Headlines: COUNTRIES SIGN ACCORDS, CLINTON LAUNCHES NAFTA CAMPAIGN OVER 250 ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS REJECT NAFTA EC MEETING UNLIKELY TO SOLVE FARM PROBLEM FRANCE MAY VETO GATT OVER AUDIOVISUAL ISSUES SUTHERLAND WILL MEET WITH KANTOR, SALINAS ________________________________________________________ NAFTA News Summary ________________________________________________________ COUNTRIES SIGN ACCORDS, CLINTON LAUNCHES NAFTA CAMPAIGN Leaders of the United States, Canada and Mexico today signed side labor and environmental agreements to the North American Free Trade Agreement. In a White House ceremony, President Bill Clinton vowed to promote the trade pact to the American people. He blamed the "fear tactics" of NAFTA foes as the reason so many Americans are against the agreement. "It is clear that most of the people who oppose this pact are rooted in the fears and insecurities that are legitimately gripping the great American middle class," Clinton said. He predicted Congress would pass NAFTA. "In the coming months I will submit this pact to Congress for approval. It will be a hard fight and I expect to be there with you every step of the way," he said. Former presidents George Bush, Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford and state, local and business leaders attended the ceremony. Bush said if NAFTA is defeated, "The biggest loser, in my opinion, will be the good ol' U.S.A." Carter criticized Ross Perot for misleading the public on NAFTA. Opponents of NAFTA planned their own Washington news conference for today. "NAFTA is bad for the working people," Candice Johnson of the AFL-CIO said Monday. Sierra Club officials and Representative David Bonior (D-Michigan) were scheduled to attend the news conference. Sources: Ron Fournier, "NAFTA," AP, September 14, 1993; "Clinton Predicts Passage of NAFTA After Hard Fight," REUTER, September 14, 1993; "Canada Signs NAFTA Environment, Labor Side Deals," REUTER, September 14, 1993; "Making the Case for NAFTA," WASHINGTON POST, September 14, 1993. ________________________________________________________ OVER 250 ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS REJECT NAFTA Over 250 environmental groups signed and sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Mickey Kantor stating thirteen reasons they oppose NAFTA. They contend the trade pact could "impact and weaken many of the progressive laws and policies we have worked for on a national, state and local level." The groups said they had hoped the side agreements would address some of NAFTA's shortcomings, "but instead the major emphasis has been on the establishment of a North American Commission on the Environment (NACE) which does little to address the serious environmental problems within the NAFTA itself." The letter encourages Kantor to "recast the NAFTA" so that it protects democratic institutions, preserves the environment and promotes sustainable development and pollution prevention. Source: "Letter to Ambassador Kantor." ________________________________________________________ GATT News Summary ________________________________________________________ EC MEETING UNLIKELY TO SOLVE FARM PROBLEM European Community foreign and agriculture ministers will gather for a special meeting September 20 to address objections raised by France and other European nations to the EC-U.S. farm trade deal. Belgian Foreign Minister Willy Claes, whose country holds the rotating six-month EC presidency, said it was not "an absolute must" to solve the problem at the meeting and promised to call another meeting of EC ministers if necessary. France has threatened to veto the deal, arguing the accord goes beyond last year's reform of the EC Common Agricultural Policy. In particular, France rejects the accord's 21 percent reduction in subsidized farm exports over six years, and says a "peace clause" to prevent further U.S. attacks on EC farm policy is too weak. Over 10,000 farmers, fishermen and truck drivers were planning to block roads to Paris on Wednesday to protest the farm agreement. Luc Guyau, president of the French farmers' association, told a news conference that French farmers hope the meeting of foreign and farm ministers will give the European Commission "a mandate to renegotiate, to discuss anew the Blair House preparatory agreement." The EC-U.S. farm agreement is considered key to completing long- stalled GATT Uruguay Round negotiations Meanwhile, Ireland has expressed concern about moves to reduce subsidized beef exports, and Spain, Italy and Greece are worried about subsidy cuts for Mediterranean farm products, such as citrus fruit and olive oil. Sources: "Senior Farm Officials Prepare for Jumbo GATT Council," REUTER, September 14, 1993; "French Farmers Want Blair House Renegotiated," REUTER, September 10, 1993. ________________________________________________________ FRANCE MAY VETO GATT OVER AUDIOVISUAL ISSUES French Culture Minister Jacques Toubon threatened to veto a GATT accord if it removes French limits on imports of American movies and television programs. Jack Valenti, president of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), has said President Clinton will not sign a GATT accord unless audiovisual trade is liberalized. In an apparent response, Toubon said, "If cinema is included, (French Prime Minister) Edouard Balladur will not sign." Source: "France Raises Fresh GATT Veto Threat," REUTER, September 14, 1993. ________________________________________________________ SUTHERLAND WILL MEET WITH KANTOR, SALINAS GATT Director-General Peter Sutherland will meet with Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari in San Francisco on September 19. Sutherland will make a three-city U.S. tour to keep up political pressure to complete the Uruguay Round by the December 15 deadline. He is also scheduled to meet with U.S. Trade Representative Mickey Kantor. Source: "GATT Chief Expected to Meet Kantor, Mexico's Salinas," REUTER, September 14, 1993. ________________________________________________________ Editor: Kai Mander The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) 1313 Fifth Street SE, Suite #303 Minneapolis, MN 55414-1546 USA Telephone:(612)379-5980 Fax:(612)379-5982 E-Mail:kmander@igc.apc.org ________________________________________________________