Reuters | February 14, 2002
KANSAS CITY - The United States will keep up pressure on China to meet its obligations for imports and exports of agricultural goods following its accession to the World Trade Organization last year, U.S. Agriculture Department Secretary Ann Veneman said this week.
"China has not been particularly forthcoming with the provisions it now needs to implement so markets can open," Veneman told reporters at a briefing during a visit here. "The administration is pushing China hard to complete the commitments it agreed to" for admission to the WTO, she said. "We will continue to be proactive on the issue."
U.S. President George W. Bush visits Beijing on February 21 and farm groups have urged him to press China on trade issues.
Bush told a U.S. cattlemen's convention at the weekend he wanted to see the Chinese eating more U.S. beef.
Veneman made no comment on Bush's agenda in Beijing, but she said: "Agriculture will continue to be a cornerstone in this administration's trade policy.
Of China, she added: "This is a very important market, and the administration will continue to be very proactive."
On February 6, officials of USDA, the U.S. Trade Representative and the State Department met with Chinese officials in Beijing to urge that China clarify the new rules for certifying and labeling genetically modified (GMO) products like soybeans and to take steps to avoid disrupting trade.
Last year, China accounted for about 20 percent of U.S. soybean exports valued at more than $1 billion. But exports ground to a halt for several months after China announced the vague new GMO rules last summer.
Exports resumed after U.S.-China talks, but trade has now slowed once again as exporters hesitate to get caught in a web of vague regulation when China puts the GMO rules into effect on March 20. Exporters fear that shipping and delivery penalties could materialize after that deadline.
"China has not presented any science to support these regulations," Veneman and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick said in a statement after the inconclusive talks on GMO rules in Beijing last week.
"As drafted, these regulations fail to provide a transparent and predictable framework for exporters and importers. The result could be a halt in exports of farm products. That is an unacceptable situation," they said.
As of January 31, China had bought 4.03 million tonnes of U.S. soybeans since last September but had yet to ship 688,200 tonnes, according to USDA.
China's soybean imports have boomed after the government decide to boost domestic feed and livestock production.Reuters:
