[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 224 (Thursday, November 20, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62095-62096]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-30420]
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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Invitation for Comment on APEC Multilateral Negotiations
Regarding a Mutual Recognition Agreement for Telecommunications
Equipment
AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) is inviting interested
persons to submit written comments with respect to the negotiation in
the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) of a Mutual Recognition
Agreement (MRA) on telecommunications equipment, and, in particular,
with respect to the potential for such an agreement to remove important
non-tariff barriers affecting trade in telecommunications and
information technology products. Comments received will be considered
by the Executive Branch in formulating U.S. positions and objectives
for negotiation of such an MRA, in particular as part of the effort by
the APEC Telecom Working Group's MRA Task Force to conclude the text of
such an agreement by the June 1998 meeting of APEC Telecommunications
Ministers.
DATES: Comments are due by noon, December 15, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Gloria Blue, Executive
Secretary, TPSC, ATTN: APEC Telecom MRA Comments, Office of the U.S.
Trade Representative, Room 503, 600 17th Street, NW., Washington, D.C.
20508.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William Corbett, Office of Industry
Affairs, USTR, (202-395-9586); or William Busis, Office of General
Counsel, USTR (202-395-3150).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: APEC consists of eighteen member economies:
Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong
China, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua
New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and the United States. The
APEC Telecommunications Working Group is a biannual forum in which
telecommunications officials of APEC economies undertake cooperative
endeavors to liberalize trade in telecommunications goods and services;
to facilitate private sector interaction with telecommunications
authorities on policy and business issues; to coordinate efforts to
promote human resources development in the regional telecommunications
industry; and to improve regional telecommunications infrastructure.
An MRA potentially would facilitate trade in a significant portion
of telecommunications and information equipment goods among members of
APEC, thereby enhancing the gains we can expect from the Information
Technology Agreement. It would allow exporters to test (``phase one'')
and certify (``phase two'') equipment to an importing economy's
mandatory technical requirements. It is potentially a useful means to
cope with ever-shortening product life cycles and to reduce the
redundancy of steps necessary to satisfy importing countries' approval
processes. The WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade encourages
members to enter into Mutual Recognition Agreements that ``give mutual
satisfaction regarding their potential for facilitating trade in the
products concerned.'' An MRA does not require harmonization of
mandatory technical requirements, albeit a possible future result of
MRA processes is harmonization of conformity assessment and technical
requirements, along with greater voluntary reliance on manufacturer's
self-declarations, where this is not already the case.
Background
At the 1995 Osaka APEC Leader's Meeting, Leaders agreed to develop
and begin to implement, on a voluntary basis and by the end of 1997, a
model mutual recognition arrangement for certification of
telecommunications equipment to the mandatory technical regulations of
importing economies. The APEC Telecommunications Working Group (the
``TEL WG'') in September 1997 reached agreement on a voluntary
framework for such MRAs. The TEL WG also reached agreement on
improvements to the existing APEC guidelines for regional harmonization
of equipment certification, which are referenced by the framework
document.
Based on this work, a Telecom MRA Task Force subsequently met to
initiate work on a Mutual Recognition Agreement and annexed Phase
Agreements, producing a bracketed text for further consideration. The
Task Force agreed that its goal would be to complete work on the texts
of an APEC Telecommunications Mutual Recognition Agreement and annexed
Phase Agreements by the third meeting of the APEC Telecommunications
Ministers, scheduled for June 1-5, 1998 in Singapore.
The Telecom MRA Task Force has agreed that an MRA should cover any
equipment that is subject to member economies' regulatory requirements
for terminal attachment (wired and wireless) or other
telecommunications regulation. For such equipment, an MRA should cover
member economies' regulatory requirements for electromagnetic
compatibility and product safety. The framework, improved guidelines
and bracketed MRA text are available for inspection at the USTR reading
room.
Invitation for Comments
The interagency TPSC led by USTR is in the process of preparing
negotiating positions for upcoming APEC Telecom MRA Task Force
meetings. Interested U.S. persons are invited to submit comments, by
noon, December 15, 1997, on what should be the U.S. goals and
objectives for an APEC MRA on telecommunications equipment. We are
requesting this advice pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 2155.
Persons submitting written comments should provide a statement, in
twenty copies, by noon, December 15, 1997, to Gloria Blue, Executive
Secretary, TPSC, ATTN: APEC Telecom MRA Comments, Office of the U.S.
Trade Representative, Room 503, 600 17th Street, NW., Washington, D.C.
20508. Non-confidential information received will be available for
public inspection by appointment in the USTR Reading Room, Room 101,
Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon and 1:00 p.m. to 4:00
p.m. For an appointment call Brenda Webb on 202-395-6186. Business
confidential information will be subject to the requirements of 15 CFR
2003.6. Any business confidential material must be clearly marked as
such on the cover letter or cover page and
[[Page 62096]]
each succeeding page, and must be accompanied by a non-confidential
summary thereof.
Frederick L. Montgomery,
Chairman, Trade Policy Staff Committee.
[FR Doc. 97-30420 Filed 11-19-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-01-P