TRADE AGREEMENT COMPLIANCE AND MONITORING

UNCLAS HANOI 002514

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MLS AND EB/TPP/BTA/ANA
STATE PASS USTR FOR HIRSCH
COMMERCE FOR 4431/MAC/AP/OPB/VLC/HPPHO
TREASURY FOR OASIA

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON ETRD VM
SUBJECT: TRADE AGREEMENT COMPLIANCE AND MONITORING

REF: STATE 152063


1. Below is post's response to reftel.


2. A. Description of how posts are currently organized for
monitoring agreements and responding to foreign trade barrier
complaints, including the establishment of teams at posts.

The Trade Agreement Compliance Team in Hanoi consists of the
Economic Section, Foreign Commercial Section and Foreign
Agricultural Section. The team meets weekly with the Ambassador to
discuss trade agreement compliance and other economic and commercial
issues.


3. B. Name of contact person at the post to coordinate post's
periodic compliance reporting, field general compliance inquiries,
and ensure complaints are reported promptly to relevant Washington
agencies.

Janet G. Speck, Deputy Chief of the Economic Section


4. C. Description of complaint response activities at post,
including examples of recent compliance successes and ongoing
compliance issues.

There is an annual bilateral meeting to review the full range of
Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) compliance issues with the
Vietnamese. On the U.S. side, USTR usually leads the delegation,
with participation from Embassy and other agencies as appropriate.
This year a high ranking official from Vietnam's Office of the
Government, which answers directly to the Prime Minister, led the
Vietnamese team, which included broad interagency participation. In
addition, the post promptly responds to compliance issues as they
arise and reports on trends in compliance and business climate
generally. The USAID-funded STAR project provides the Vietnamese
Government (GVN) with comments on the compatibility of proposed
legislation and regulations with BTA requirements and training on
implementation. Its assistance has been crucial in ensuring that
the mass of legislation that Vietnam passed in preparation for WTO
accession met both BTA and WTO requirements.


5. The mission succeeded in pushing the GVN to remove a ban on
imports of poultry products imposed November 2005. This resulted
from a coordinated effort of the Chief of Mission, FAS and
State/Econ. In WTO-accession negotiations, a coordinated effort
between post, USDA and USTR won Vietnam's commitment immediately to
roll back BSE restrictions and remove duplicative health
certification requirements for meat and poultry imports, as well as
ensured that these commitments were implemented as promised. Post
also persuade to the GVN to liberalize rules regarding hotel
management contracts, which impeded U.S. business and conflicted
with BTA requirements.


6. D. Description of proactive monitoring efforts at post.

The mission regularly reviews and updates its database on Vietnam's
obligations under the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA)
and its progress in compliance. Before the annual BTA compliance
review, post sends to Washington a cable outlining all outstanding
BTA compliance issues. On IPR, which is an issue of particular
concern, the mission has prepared a strategy of initiatives,
technical assistance, demarches, roundtables with business and other
activities.


7. For SPS and other agricultural trade related issues, FAS offices
in both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are regularly in contact with the
trade as to their concerns with imports of agricultural goods.
FAS/Hanoi each year summarizes Vietnam's agricultural-related
compliance issues and trade barriers, and formalizes agricultural
trade strategy in two documents, the Trade Policy Monitoring Report
and the Country Strategy Statement. These are provided to
FAS/Washington and also shared with other interested mission
members.

ALOISI