[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 247 (Wednesday, December 26, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76165-76166]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-30965]
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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
[Dispute No. WTO/DS444]
WTO Dispute Settlement Proceeding Regarding Argentina--Measures
Affecting the Importation of Goods
AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Office of the United States Trade Representative
(``USTR'') is providing notice that the United States has requested the
establishment of a dispute settlement panel under the Marrakesh
Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (``WTO
Agreement''). That request may be found at www.wto.org contained in a
document designated as WT/DS444/10. USTR invites written comments from
the public concerning the issues raised in this dispute.
DATES: Although USTR will accept any comments received during the
course of the dispute settlement proceedings, comments should be
submitted on or before January 18, 2013 to be assured of timely
consideration by USTR.
ADDRESSES: Public comments should be submitted electronically to
www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2012-0023. If you are unable to
provide submissions by www.regulations.gov, please contact Sandy
McKinzy at (202) 395-9483 to arrange for an alternative method of
transmission.
If (as explained below) the comment contains confidential
information, then the comment should be submitted by fax only to Sandy
McKinzy at (202) 395-3640.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Greta Milligan Peisch, Assistant
General Counsel, Office of the United States Trade Representative, 600
17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20508, (202) 395-3150.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 127(b) of the Uruguay Round
Agreements Act (``URAA'') (19 U.S.C. 3537(b)(1)) requires that notice
and opportunity for comment be provided after the United States submits
or receives a request for the establishment of a WTO dispute settlement
panel. Consistent with this obligation, USTR is providing notice that a
dispute settlement panel has been requested pursuant to the WTO Dispute
Settlement Understanding (``DSU''). The panel will hold its meetings in
Geneva, Switzerland.
Major Issues Raised by the United States
The United States has requested the establishment of a panel to
consider certain measures imposed by Argentina on the importation of
goods into Argentina. In particular, Argentina subjects the importation
of all goods to approval of a non-automatic import license through the
Declaraci[oacute]n Jurada Anticipada de Importaci[oacute]n (``DJAI'')
system. Argentina subjects the importation of certain categories goods
into Argentina to other, product-specific, non-automatic import
licenses, or Licencias No Autom[aacute]ticas de Importaci[oacute]n, in
the form of Certificados de Importaci[oacute]n (``CIs''). The legal
instruments through which Argentina maintains these measures are set
out in the annexes to the panel request. The issuance of CIs and
approval of DJAIs are systematically delayed or denied by Argentine
authorities on non-transparent grounds.
In addition, Argentina often requires imports to undertake certain
commitments including to limit imports, to balance imports with
exports, to make or increase investments in production facilities in
Argentina, to increase the local content of products manufactured in
Argentina (and thereby discriminate against imported products), to
refrain from transferring revenue or other funds abroad and/or to
control the price of imported goods. The Argentine authorities often
make the issuance of CIs and the approval of DJAIs conditional upon the
importers undertaking to comply with the above-mentioned trade-
restrictive commitments.
Through these measures, Argentina appears to have acted
inconsistently with its obligations under the General Agreement on
Tariffs and Trade (``GATT 1994'') and the Agreement on Import Licensing
Procedures (``Import Licensing Agreement''). Specifically, by adopting
and maintaining these measures, Argentina appears to have acted
inconsistently with Articles III:4, X:1, X:3(a) and XI:1 of the GATT
1994, and Articles 1.3, 1.4(a), 1.6, 3.2, 3.3, 3.5(f), 5.1, 5.2, 5.3
and 5.4 of the Import Licensing Agreement.
Public Comment: Requirements for Submissions
Interested persons are invited to submit written comments
concerning the issues raised in this dispute. Persons may submit public
comments electronically to www.regulations.gov docket number USTR-2012-
0023. If you are unable to provide submissions by www.regulations.gov,
please contact Sandy McKinzy at (202) 395-9483 to arrange for an
alternative method of transmission.
To submit comments via www.regulations.gov, enter docket number
USTR-2012-0023 on the home page and click ``search''. The site will
provide a search-results page listing all documents associated with
this docket. Find a reference to this notice by selecting ``Notice''
under ``Document Type'' on the left side of the search-results page,
and click on the link entitled ``Submit a Comment.'' (For further
information on using the www.regulations.gov Web site, please consult
the resources provided on the Web site by clicking on ``How to Use This
Site'' on the left side of the home page.)
The www.regulations.gov site provides the option of providing
comments by filling in a ``Type Comments'' field, or by attaching a
document using an ``upload file'' field. It is expected that most
comments will be provided in an attached document. If a document is
attached, it is sufficient to type ``See attached'' in the ``Type
Comments'' field.
A person requesting that information contained in a comment
submitted by that person be treated as confidential business
information must certify that such information is business confidential
and would not customarily be released to the public by the submitter.
Confidential business information must be clearly designated as such
and the submission must be marked ``BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL'' at the top
and bottom of the cover page and each succeeding page. Any comment
containing business confidential information must be submitted by fax
to Sandy McKinzy at (202) 395-3640. A non-confidential summary of the
confidential information must be submitted to www.regulations.gov. The
non-confidential summary will be placed in the docket and open to
public inspection.
[[Page 76166]]
Information or advice contained in a comment submitted, other than
business confidential information, may be determined by USTR to be
confidential in accordance with section 135(g)(2) of the Trade Act of
1974 (19 U.S.C. 2155(g)(2)). If the submitter believes that information
or advice may qualify as such, the submitter--
(1) Must clearly so designate the information or advice;
(2) Must clearly mark the material as ``SUBMITTED IN CONFIDENCE''
at the top and bottom of the cover page and each succeeding page; and
(3) Must provide a non-confidential summary of the information or
advice.
Any comment containing confidential information must be submitted
by fax. A non-confidential summary of the confidential information must
be submitted to www.regulations.gov. The non-confidential summary will
be placed in the docket and open to public inspection.
Pursuant to section 127(e) of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (19
U.S.C. 3537(e)), USTR will maintain a docket on this dispute settlement
proceeding accessible to the public at www.regulations.gov, docket
number USTR-2012-0023. The public file will include non-confidential
comments received by USTR from the public with respect to the dispute.
If a dispute settlement panel is convened or in the event of an appeal
from such a panel, the U.S. submissions, any non-confidential
submissions, or non-confidential summaries of submissions, received
from other participants in the dispute, will be made available to the
public on USTR's Web site at www.ustr.gov, and the report of the panel,
and, if applicable, the report of the Appellate Body, will be available
on the Web site of the World Trade Organization, www.wto.org. Comments
open to public inspection may be viewed on the www.regulations.gov Web
site.
Juan Millan,
Acting Assistant United States Trade Representative for Monitoring and
Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 2012-30965 Filed 12-21-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3290-F3-P