The Wall Street Journal
Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- Brazil, Argentina and four other countries were put on notice Monday that they could face unfair trade charges before the World Trade Organization unless they resolve disputes with the U.S. in coming weeks.
The Clinton administration singled out those nations as part of an annual review required by Congress to set priorities for enforcement actions.
Brazil was targeted for two alleged violations, one involving what the administration called unfair border-pricing procedures by the government on textiles and other goods and the other complaint involving what the administration charged was Brazil's unfair practice of giving preference on patents to local manufacturers.
The other five other nations targeted in the annual trade review were Argentina, for its failure to implement what the administration considers sufficient patent protections for pharmaceuticals; Romania, for discriminatory border pricing on clothing, poultry and distilled spirits; India, for rules requiring a certain amount of local content in autos; the Philippines, for local-content requirements on autos and motorcycles, and Denmark, for the general enforcement of its patent and copyright laws.
The six nations now face the prospects of having to defend their trade practices in cases brought before the Geneva-based WTO if consultations with the United States over the next 60 days do not produce a satisfactory resolution of the disputes.
"These cases underscore our determination to take vigorous action against foreign government practices that conflict with international obligations," U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky said in a statement announcing the administration's decisions.
The announcements were included in three reports the administration submits annually to Congress detailing its trade negotiating priorities for the coming year.
While the U.S. trade deficit set a new record last year of $268 billion, Japan and China, the two countries responsible for the biggest share of that imbalance were not among the six nations targeted for imminent WTO cases.
Instead, Japan was placed in a lower priority ranking that the administration said "may warrant stepped-up enforcement action in the near future." Japan was singled out for its alleged failure to implement market-opening agreements involving flat glass and its government bid procedures.
The European Union, another large trading partner with which the United States had a large deficit last year, was put on notice that its subsidies to Airbus, the European plane manufacturer competing against U.S.-based Boeing, could result in a future WTO complaint.
Administration officials defended the priorities exhibited in the reports, arguing that the provisions of law being used, including Section 301 complaints, are just one of a number of ways the United States has to combat unfair trade practices.
As part of the review process announced Monday, the administration said it was placing 16 trading partners on a priority watch list and another 39 on a watch list because of alleged failures to comply with all provisions of international trade rules regarding protection of copyrights and patents.
But Ms. Barshefsky stressed that the administration wanted to be careful in these reviews to "ensure that the application of U.S. trade law related to intellectual property remains sufficiently flexible to respond to public health crises."
AIDS activists last year accused the administration of failing in its trade policies to take into account the desperate plight of thousands of AIDS suffers in Third World countries who were unable to afford medicine.
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