[DMCA-Activists] Transatlantic Economic Partnership Consultation

[Seth Johnson]

Okay, those who are working internationally might want to put in
a comment on this page.  Unfortunately, I just heard about it,
and the deadline is in two days, 11/30.  Seems like a lot of us
could say many things, in a lot of areas.  Many of us could put
in a few good words about exclusive rights policy.  But Internet
governance, communications, competition, antitrust, scholarship
issues like "technology transfer" policies, privacy and freedom
issues, all seem like good fits for this very general call for
comments describing obstacles to transatlantic integration, and
how to overcome them.  They also ask for comments on how to
enhance transparency and public participation in this
discourse.


Seth


(Full page text describing purposes, etc. pasted below form)

> http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/us/consultation/index.htm

Strengthening the EU-US Economic Partnership

Request from the services of the European Commission for comments
and proposals


EU-US Consultation

  EU-US Consultation Form:
    http://europa.eu.int/yourvoice/forms/dispatch?form=340
  Summit Declaration:
   
http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/us/sum06_04/decl_eco.pdf
  EU-US Economic Relations:
   
http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/us/economic_relations/index.htm
  Trade EU-US:
   
http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/issues/bilateral/countries/usa/index_en.htm

---

> http://europa.eu.int/yourvoice/forms/dispatch?form=340

Strengthening the EU-US Economic Partnership

Background Information

I am answering as(Compulsory)
  individual person     governmental body       university/higher degree
  private business      trade association       trade union
  employers association chamber of commerce     NGO
  think tank    other, please specify

Name of organisation (please write "none" if you are answering as
an individual person)(Compulsory)

Your organisation's area of establishment (of residence if
individual)(Compulsory)
  European Union        United States   Other, please specify:

Number of employees/members in your organisation(Compulsory)
  individual    1-9     10-49
  50-249        250-499 500+

Name of contact person(Compulsory)

Email address(Compulsory)

Questions

The Commission services are interested in your views, inter alia
on the following questions:

   Q1: What in your view are the most significant obstacles to
closer EU-US economic integration?

   Q2: What practical measures should be undertaken to remove the
obstacles?

   Q3: What additional measures could be taken to further
transatlantic economic integration to the fullest, spur
innovation, create jobs and better realise the competitive
potential of our economies and enterprises?

   Q4: The EU-US bilateral trade and economic agenda has achieved
some progress, especially through the Financial Markets
Regulatory Dialogue, the Guidelines for Regulatory Cooperation
and Transparency, the Galileo-GPS agreement on satellite
navigation and the Mutual Recognition Agreement on marine
equipment. Should more of this be done? Which new areas do you
suggest?

   Q5: What measures would be appropriate to promote good
corporate governance and reliable financial information in the
transatlantic market?

   Q6: Can you suggest essential steps that should be taken to
ease transatlantic direct and indirect investment ?

   Q7: Do you have any proposals on how to protect the
environment, consumer interests and health and safety as well as
labour standards, while simultaneously promoting further economic
integration?

   Q8: To what extent do new border and transport security
measures have an impact on trade, investment and travel? If they
do have a negative impact, what remedies would you propose?

   Q9: Does the administration of export controls and transfers
of know how in the US and the EU work satisfactorily in balancing
the objectives of trade and security? If not, what measures
should be taken jointly to improve the situation?

  Q10: What additional steps, if any, should be taken jointly to
protect Intellectual Property Rights?

  Q11: Do you experience problems when tendering for public
contracts in the US? If so, what should be done to remedy these
problems?

  Q12: What should be done to further liberalise transatlantic
trade in services, including professional qualifications?

  Q13: Do you think that a further reduction or elimination of
tariffs between the EU and US is important? If so, which or in
which sectors?

  Q14: Do you have any comment on the possible impact that
strengthening EU-US bilateral integration might have on the
multilateral trading system and the interests of developing
countries?

  Q15: How can we enhance transparency and public participation
in the transatlantic economic dialogue?

  Q16: Do you have any other comments or suggestions?

---

> http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/us/consultation/index.htm


Strengthening the EU-US Economic Partnership


Request from the services of the European Commission for comments
and proposals


1. EU and US leaders agreed at the EU-US Summit in June 2004 to
look at new ways to make the transatlantic economic relationship
stronger, and to give it new impetus. Presidents Prodi and Bush
and Prime Minister Ahern called for innovative proposals to
further develop the transatlantic market in the 21st century.
They called on all interested parties “on both sides of the
Atlantic to engage in a vigorous discussion of concrete ideas on
how to further transatlantic economic integration to the fullest,
spur innovation and job creation, and better realise the
competitive potential of our economies and enterprises”.1

2. This consultative document sets out some key elements of the
Transatlantic Economic Partnership and requests comments and
proposals from stakeholders. The US Government is running a
similar consultation.

Purpose of this consultation

3. The starting point of this exercise is the existing strong
economic partnership between the EU and the US as set out in the
annex. This consultation is aimed at bringing forward new ideas
on how to further transatlantic economic integration, to enhance
the flow of investment as well as trade, and to identify and
overcome obstacles to the realisation of the competitive
potential of our economies. In this consultation, the Commission
services want to go beyond the annual review of trade barriers on
which the Commission and US Government publish reports2 and to
consider more far-reaching ideas.

4. The Commission services are, therefore, looking for concrete
proposals to develop the EU/US economic partnership from all
segments of civil society including business, trade unions,
environmental and consumer NGOs,  and academic circles.

5. It is understood that any new effort to promote transatlantic
economic integration would have to take account of systemic
differences, such as differing ways of governance and public
attitudes, which also shape our transatlantic economic
relationship and can be a source of misunderstanding and
sometimes friction. Among these differences the following can be
identified:

   · existence in the US of many federal and sub-federal agencies
with independent powers, which the US Administration cannot
override;
   · more frequent resort in the US towards using litigation to
solve disputes, whereas the EU leans towards regulatory options
and compliance;
   · different public attitudes towards risk, safety and
precaution.

6. Finally, the endeavour to strengthen our bilateral economic
partnership should be placed within the broader context of our
common aim to continue developing sound economic ties with the
rest of the world and notably with the developing countries. Our
renewed partnership should also contribute to the advancement of
this and other aspects, such as sustainable development.

7. The services of the Commission would like to receive input
from this consultation from a wide range of stakeholders with
interests in the EU-US economic relationship. If you wish to let
us have your thoughts on any part of this consultation document,
please send in your reply to reach us by 30 November 2004.  The
online form is available at:

    * To continue send your reply via our online consultation
form (http://europa.eu.int/yourvoice/forms/dispatch?form=340)


Your replies will help to formulate policy options which could in
turn, feed into a joint strategy to enhance EU-US economic
partnership and eliminate barriers. In parallel, between now and
the end of November the Commission intends to organise a
stakeholder event in Brussels. It is expected that this will be
supplemented by some events organised by national Governments of
member states. These activities will give further opportunities
for you to contribute your views.

ANNEX

The transatlantic economic relationship

The EU and US form the largest trade and investment relationship
in the world and are each other’s largest trade and investment
partners. The volume of trade in 2003 comprised more than € 600
bn ($ 725 bn) worth of goods and services.3 Large as this is, it
is now far outweighed by the flow of investment. In 2003, the EU
had € 890 bn of direct investment in the US while the US had €
650 bn in the EU; a total of over € 1.5 trillion ($ 1.8 trn).
Today investment constitutes the most significant element of our
economic relationship.

The EU and the US have a long history of close cooperation in
GATT and then the WTO, most recently illustrated over the
adoption of a new Doha Round framework in July. This cooperation
has underpinned this high level of economic interdependence,
despite the absence of any formal trade/investment agreement
between the EU and US.

The structure of our economic cooperation framework

With the aim of structuring discussions over issues that arise in
trade, and over steps to build closer cooperation, the EU and the
US have adopted some formal arrangements that have been built up
over the past ten years. The framework of the EU-US economic
relationship goes beyond trade and investment and includes a
number of institutionalised dialogues and growing regulatory
cooperation between the partners. The main elements of this
framework are described below. The EU and the US also cooperate
in numerous multilateral organisations.

The New Transatlantic Agenda (NTA) and the accompanying EU-US
Joint Action Plan of December 1995 created a senior level
dialogue structure and embarked on a series of concrete
cooperative endeavours. One of the aims of the NTA is “to create
a New Transatlantic Marketplace by progressively reducing or
eliminating barriers that hinder flow of goods, services and
capital between us”.

The Transatlantic Economic Partnership (TEP) agreed in May 1998
lays the foundations to enable the EU and US to intensify their
efforts to reduce or eliminate barriers to trade and investment
between them notably through closer co-operation between
regulators. It allows them to focus initiatives on areas where
there is goodwill on both sides and where gains can be enormous –
for example financial markets. It promotes upstream convergence
or mutual recognition of rules and standards; and it acts as an
early warning mechanism in case a potentially damaging piece of
legislation is in the pipeline. In November 1998 the European
Commission and the US Administration adopted a rolling work
programme, entitled the TEP Action Plan. This document identifies
areas for common actions both bilaterally and multilaterally.
Some elements of the plan take the form of trade negotiations,
others are achieved through co-operative actions.

In order to manage day-to-day transatlantic trade and investment
relations, the TEP Steering Group (SG) was set up. It monitors
the realisation of TEP objectives and provides a horizontal forum
for bilateral consultation and early warning on any matter of
trade and investment relevance, with a view to preventing
conflicts and resolving trade frictions. It is also responsible
for implementing and developing the Positive Economic Agenda
(PEA) – a series of positive and specific trade-related
initiatives designed in May 2002 to promote co-operation and
mutual commercial benefit. Activities under the PEA include the
implementation of the Guidelines on Regulatory Cooperation and
Transparency, developed in 2002 under the TEP, and the Financial
Markets Dialogue, a forum for the discussion of complex bilateral
financial and regulatory issues.
 

To continue send your reply via our online consultation form
(http://europa.eu.int/yourvoice/forms/dispatch?form=340)
 

1/ EU-U.S. Declaration on Strengthening our Economic Partnership
http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/us/sum06_04/decl_eco.pdf

2/ USTR’s 2004 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade
Barriers (NTE):
www.ustr.gov/Document_Library/Reports_Publications/2004/2004_National_Trade_Estimate/2004_NTE_Report/Section_Index.html

The EU’s 2003 Report on United States Barriers to Trade and
Investment:
http://trade-info.cec.eu.int/doclib/docs/2003/december/tradoc_115383.pdf

3/ For comparison, figures for EU trade in goods and services
with the next largest partners:
with Switzerland: € 200.7 bn, with China: € 155.7 bn, with Japan
:€ 139.1 bn, with Russia € 113 bn