Brussels, 13/09/2000 (Agence Europe) - It is one day late in relation to the schedule initially planned, but with the firm determination to respect the 1 October deadline established in Geneva, that the American House of Representatives - lower house of Congress - was to vote definitively Wednesday evening on the revision of the Foreign Sales Corporation (FSC) for which the World Trade Organisation had established its illegality. A fw days before this defining stage of the American legislative procedure (the vote in the Senate then the presidential signature should follow quickly), the under-secretary to the Treasury, Stuart Eizenstat, publicly made it known that he regrets the negative reaction of the Europeans (see EUROPE of 2 September, p.6), in inviting them to abandon the confrontation to the benefit of negotiation. He remains convinced of the compatibility of the new legislative text with WTO rules, he indicated in an open letter to the press.
'We feel that (this proposal) is in accordance with WTO rules", stated the former United States Ambassador to the EU. "The Appeals body admitted that the members are free to tax, or not to tax, revenue as they desire. Our legislative proposal excludes taxation of revenue made from foreign sales, such an exclusion does not constitute a subsidy", he reaffirmed, by insisting: "our text "completely cancels the FSC and creates a new regime that does not involve subsidies and does not depend on exports". The European Commission has, however, not admitted and it has also refused "to sit down and work with us to resolve this problem', regretted Mr Eizenstat when renewing his invitation. "The dispute affects the very heart of the national political choices of governments" and "its potential scope implies that it is essential that we resolve this complex problem with patience and diligence before it become a thorn in our relations".
The leaders of the Republicans and Democrats in the House of Representatives expect this new regime to easily pass through Congress. "It is extremely important that we send a message to the Europeans to signal that we are taking this seriously", announced the Republican Bill Archer, leader of the influential "Ways and Means" Committee in the House, on the eve of the vote.