USTR Targets December to Meet TFA Ratification Threshold
MIAMI -- The U.S. is aiming to get two-thirds of World Trade Organization members to ratify the Trade Facilitation Agreement and put the pact's implementation into force by December, said Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for the WTO Mark Linscott at the International Chamber of Commerce and U.S. Council for International Business trade facilitation symposium on Feb. 23. The plan to reach that goal focuses on private sector influence on WTO members and diplomatic pressure through the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the G20 and other international forums, said Linscott.
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The business community is likely to take on a “back-door version of enforcement,” said ICC Chairman Harold McGraw, who called the deal “absolutely gargantuan.” The December target is ambitious, but the U.S. and other developed countries will prioritize assistance for WTO members that show progress in implementation, in hopes of spurring those countries to action, Linscott said.
That progress would involve communication on expected timing of implementation and the resources necessary to do so successfully, Linscott added. The TFA protocol outlines three categories for WTO member commitment pledges and assistance requests (see 13120922). Many lesser-developed countries are likely to move ahead with implementation under Category C in Article 2 of the protocol, which is the only category that involves assistance requests.
All WTO members, for the most part, have taken some steps toward implementation, said Virginia Brown, director for trade at the U.S. Agency for International Development. The U.S. will try to ensure its assistance will help integrate screening agencies and put single windows in place in recipient countries, she said.
The TFA could be the most impactful development in WTO history and its members are on board, said Linscott. “We sense that there is a strong commitment on the part of all members,” said Linscott. “It’s truly empowering for certainly the developing countries and I think the assistance aspect of this is going to be critical.” All 21 APEC countries are tentatively committed to ratifying the deal by May, Linscott added. The U.S. is only one of three countries to ratify the pact (see 1502230027). The U.S. is an APEC member, as are Hong Kong and Singapore, the other two countries to ratify.
The business community needs to take advantage of the new energy for the agreement, said McGraw. “From a business standpoint, we have a lot of work to do,” he said. “I think to ratify two-thirds by the end of 2015 … sign me up. I’ll take it, because that’s a lot of work.” WTO members advanced the TFA to the ratification process last November (see 1411280027).
The agreement has the potential to spread the benefits of trade throughout the globe, but more automation and advance rulings would optimize the agreement globally, said Sarah Thorn, government relations senior director at Walmart. The TFA requires signatories to issue advance rulings on tariff classification and origin “in a reasonable, time bound manner” after receipt of a written request.
Meanwhile, the U.S. aims to sharpen and strengthen its own implementation of the TFA through putting the Automated Commercial Environment and the International Trade Data System into effect, said CBP Assistant Commissioner Brenda Smith. “That’s where I see the greatest opportunity to implement and really move the ball down the field for implementation of the trade facilitation agreement.” Although there's a Dec. 31, 2016, deadline for ITDS implementation, the “bulk” of CBP’s work will be completed by November 2015. CBP is “moving at lightning speed for government, in making changes in the technology and business process,” of trade, said Smith. Continued collaboration with the private sector will be critical in optimizing the transition to ITDS and the TFA, she said.