EMBASSY MUSCAT NOMINATION OF BRIAN GRIMM FOR HERBERT

UNCLAS MUSCAT 000333 SIPDIS SIPDIS FOR EEB ASSISTANT SECRETARY DANIEL SULLIVAN FROM AMBASSADOR GARY A. GRAPPO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: APER AMGT ECON BEXP ETRD MU SUBJECT: EMBASSY MUSCAT NOMINATION OF BRIAN GRIMM FOR HERBERT SALZMAN AWARD REF: A) STATE 18732 B) MUSCAT 310 ¶1. Economic/Commercial Officer Brian Grimm significantly advanced U.S. policy and objectives in the economic field over the last year. His outstanding work on the Free Trade Agreement deserves the highest praise. In conjunction with his other accomplishments, I am pleased to nominate Brian for the 2008 Herbert Salzman Award for Excellence in International Economic Performance. ¶2. Free trade agreements between the U.S. and other countries serve as powerful catalysts for economic growth and development, both at home and abroad. At the end of September 2006, President Bush signed the landmark U.S.-Oman Free Trade Agreement (FTA),which has since brought sweeping changes to Oman's business and legal environment. Now ratified, implementation and promotion of the FTA is central to showcase the benefits of open trade and economic reform in the volatile Arab world. No single Foreign Service Officer has done more to accomplish this important goal than Brian Grimm. Moreover, no FTA implementation process has faced so many hurdles and pitfalls as this one. ¶3. As Embassy Muscat's sole Economic/Commercial officer and point person on all FTA issues, Brian has worked tirelessly to guide the Agreement through the arduous implementation process. He has liaised closely on an almost daily basis with the U.S. Trade Representative Office (USTR) and the Omani government to provide both with expert advice and to facilitate negotiations on a wide range of issues concerning customs administration, intellectual property, telecommunications, government procurement, and transparency, among others. After initially moving ahead in developing FTA-compliant regulations, the Omani government eventually lost its way, becoming frustrated with what was viewed as unreasonable U.S. demands. While keeping USTR and other relevant agencies informed of his activities, Brian used his extensive knowledge of the Omani bureaucracy and local economic concerns to intervene with Omani officials, who had grown to strongly respect and trust him. Thanks to Brian, tempers were calmed, expectations were clarified, and the Omani government was persuaded to renew cooperation. ¶4. Brian subsequently proposed and also arranged for a one-week visit by a well-regarded trade consultant (and former U.S. ambassador) to help put Oman back on track towards FTA implementation. To maximize her effectiveness, Brian briefed the consultant on the status of each outstanding item, identified pertinent Omani regulatory hurdles, outlined the biases of her Omani interlocutors, and subsequently assisted her with drafting appropriate remedies. Working closely together, they then convinced the Omanis to implement the proposed remedies to meet FTA standards. As a result, the visit became a watershed event and earned Brian praise from me, USTR, and the usually pessimistic Minister of Commerce and Industry. ¶5. To sustain the positive momentum on the FTA that he generated, Brian kept influential stakeholders, including officials in both the U.S. and Omani governments, well-informed about progress on remaining issues. As part of this effort, he developed an abbreviated checklist, which he updated regularly, that concisely described the status of every action item. This list also focused attention on major sticking points, such as Oman's fear that the FTA's strong intellectual property protections would impede its ability to obtain needed pharmaceutical products. Working closely with USTR and industry representatives, Brian overcame this obstacle by convincing his counterpart at the Ministry of Health that Oman's concerns could be met without infringing upon the rights of U.S. pharmaceutical companies. ¶6. Oman's ability to develop FTA-compliant telecommunications licensing criteria has presented another significant obstacle to FTA implementation. Using key contacts that he developed in this sector, Brian learned that Omani telecommunications regulators - who favored more competition - were constrained by a finance ministry that wanted to sell off a major portion of the government's fixed-line monopoly carrier before allowing liberalization to occur. With this information, Brian advised me of the situation. I was then able to enlist a commitment from the highest levels of the government to resolve the impasse. ¶7. Anticipation of the FTA's implementation has generated significant attention among Oman's business leaders. To help open the doors for trade and investment opportunities afforded by the FTA, Brian orchestrated a visit by Oman's investment promotion chief to Washington, where he met with both public and private sector officials to publicize the benefits of doing business in Oman. Brian persuaded a U.S. trade delegation to add Muscat to its Middle East itinerary, which allowed him to bring prominent Omani companies together with U.S. counterparts to explore investment and commercial opportunities. These efforts followed-up on the very successful FTA Awareness Conference that Brian had earlier brought to fruition in Muscat that included participation of notable government and private industry officials from both the U.S. and Oman, including the Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for the region. ¶8. In conjunction with his outstanding work on the FTA, Brian has been extremely active and productive in both promoting economic reforms that reflect U.S. policies and economic reporting priorities. Regarding the former, Brian has directed funds from the State Department's Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) to move Oman further towards free and open markets. For example, recognizing a deficiency in the way Omani customs authorities inspect and admit goods, Brian secured a MEPI commitment to hold workshops on innovative customs concepts. Similarly, after identifying weaknesses in the Omani government's ability to deter counterfeit goods crossing its borders and to stop satellite broadcast piracy, Brian worked with MEPI to deliver training programs addressing these areas. He also has been the driving force behind multiple intellectual property rights workshops for judges, government officials and private businesses. As a result of these efforts, the commercial rights of U.S. companies have been strengthened and Oman is better prepared to implement its FTA obligations. ¶9. Brian's written reports cover a broad range of economic subjects, but share a defining feature - uniform excellence in both style and content. In addition to his outstanding work in producing mandated documents such as the Country Commercial Guide and National Trade Estimate, Brian generates a steady stream of analytical reports on issues of high interest to Washington readers. His reporting, for example, has focused on the Omani government's commitment to retain its currency peg to the U.S. dollar, attempts to increase oil and gas production levels, and Oman's push to diversify its economy through industrialization and development projects (including those that offer significant opportunities for U.S. businesses). Most of Brian's noteworthy reporting contain classified paragraphs - which reflects his excellent access to confidential sources - but his recent unclassified cable on the SIPDIS impact of rising food and commodity prices, and the government's response to it, provides an accessible example of Brian's superb writing and analytical skills (Muscat 310). ¶10. Based on Brian's accomplishments outlined above, I strongly recommend Brian Grimm for the 2008 Salzman Award for Excellence in International Economic Performance. His performance and output as Post's sole Economic and Commercial Officer were equal to those of a multi-officer economic section at most other posts. Brian's initiative, determination, and command of the diverse range of economic issues of importance to the USG were the major contributing factor to this Post's success on economic and commercial priorities. Embassy Muscat also proposes the following award citation: For outstanding contributions to the implementation of the landmark U.S.-Oman Free Trade Agreement, and for sustained excellence in promoting economic reforms in support of U.S. policies and in reporting on economic issues. GRAPPO