Brussels, 03/09/2004 (Agence Europe) - Commissioner Pascal Lamy will be in Indonesia as of 4 September, for consultations with the economy and trade ministers of the ten ASEAN countries, and a series of bilateral meetings with the Indonesian authorities. Negotiations at the WTO will undoubtedly be raised, as will future priority actions as part of the "Trans-Regional EU-ASEAN Trade Initiative" (TREATI). On 6 and 7 September, Mr Lamy will hold talks in Singapore with the Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, foreign minister George Yep and trade minister Lim Hng Kiang.
In the meantime, it transpired on Friday that at its weekly meeting, the "133 Committee", did not discuss the strategy to be adopt by the EU further to the WTO's decision of this week on the "Byrd amendment" (EUROPE of 2 September, p.8). On Tuesday, the WTO had concluded that, as Washington had still not withdrawn the text it ruled illegal in January 2003, the EU and its seven co-plaintiffs were authorised to impose fines on the United States. "We have not had enough time since Tuesday to look in detail at the WTO's decision and prepare the dossier for the Member States in the 133 Committee. We might have done so by next week", said a Commission spokesperson. Before putting the case before the Member States, the Commission hopes to consult the seven other plaintiff countries (Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, India, Japan and South Korea). It is known that a withdrawal of the Byrd amendment is seen as the favoured option over sanctions, which could lead to further transatlantic trade tension.