i 106TH CONGRESS "!WMCP: 1st Session COMMITTEE PRINT 106±7 SUBCOMMITTEE ON TRADE OF THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WRITTEN COMMENTS ON THE EXTENSION OF UNCONDITIONAL NOR- MAL TRADE RELATIONS TO ALBANIA, ARMENIA, GEORGIA, AND MOLDOVA DECEMBER 22, 1999 Printed for the use of the Committee on Ways and Means by its staff U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 60±252 CC WASHINGTON : 1999 VerDate 11-SEP-98 14:17 Dec 21, 1999 Jkt 060252 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5012 Sfmt 5012 F:60252 W&M3 PsN: W&M3 COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS BILL ARCHER, Texas, Chairman PHILIP M. CRANE, Illinois CHARLES B. RANGEL, New York BILL THOMAS, California FORTNEY PETE STARK, California E. CLAY SHAW, JR., Florida ROBERT T. MATSUI, California NANCY L. JOHNSON, Connecticut WILLIAM J. COYNE, Pennsylvania AMO HOUGHTON, New York SANDER M. LEVIN, Michigan WALLY HERGER, California BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland JIM MCCRERY, Louisiana JIM MCDERMOTT, Washington DAVE CAMP, Michigan GERALD D. KLECZKA, Wisconsin JIM RAMSTAD, Minnesota JOHN LEWIS, Georgia JIM NUSSLE, Iowa RICHARD E. NEAL, Massachusetts SAM JOHNSON, Texas MICHAEL R. MCNULTY, New York JENNIFER DUNN, Washington WILLIAM J. JEFFERSON, Louisiana MAC COLLINS, Georgia JOHN S. TANNER, Tennessee ROB PORTMAN, Ohio XAVIER BECERRA, California PHILIP S. ENGLISH, Pennsylvania KAREN L. THURMAN, Florida WES WATKINS, Oklahoma LLOYD DOGGETT, Texas J.D. HAYWORTH, Arizona JERRY WELLER, Illinois KENNY HULSHOF, Missouri SCOTT MCINNIS, Colorado RON LEWIS, Kentucky MARK FOLEY, Florida A.L. SINGLETON, Chief of Staff JANICE MAYS, Minority Chief Counsel SUBCOMMITTEE ON TRADE PHILIP M. CRANE, Illinois, Chairman BILL THOMAS, California SANDER M. LEVIN, Michigan E. CLAY SHAW, JR., Florida CHARLES B. RANGEL, New York AMO HOUGHTON, New York RICHARD E. NEAL, Massachusetts DAVE CAMP, Michigan MICHAEL R. MCNULTY, New York JIM RAMSTAD, Minnesota WILLIAM J. JEFFERSON, Louisiana JENNIFER DUNN, Washington XAVIER BECERRA, California WALLY HERGER, California JIM NUSSLE, Iowa Pursuant to clause 2(e)(4) of Rule XI of the Rules of the House, public hearing records of the Committee on Ways and Means are also published in electronic form. The printed record of written comments remains the official version. Because electronic submissions are used to prepare both printed and electronic versions of the hearing/written comments record, the process of converting between various electronic formats may introduce unintentional errors or omissions. Such occurrences are inherent in the current publication process and should diminish as the process is further refined. ii VerDate 11-SEP-98 14:17 Dec 21, 1999 Jkt 060252 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 0486 Sfmt 0486 F:60252 W&M3 PsN: W&M3 C O N T E N T S Page Advisory of October 4, 1999, announcing request for written comments on the extension of unconditional normal trade relations to Albania, Armenia, Georgia, and Moldova .......................................................................................... 1 Armenian Assembly of America, Ross Vartian, letter .......................................... 3 Atlantic Council of the United States, Hon. Roger Kirk, letter ........................... 5 Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, Mark Z. Orr, letter ..................... 6 Engel, Hon. Eliot L., a Representative in Congress from the State of New York; Hon. Steny H. Hoyer, a Representative in Congress from the State of Maryland; Hon. Sue W. Kelly, a Representative in Congress from the State of New York; Hon. Jerrold Nadler, a Representative in Congress from the State of New York; Hon. James P. Moran, a Representative in Congress from the State of Virginia; Hon. Tim Roemer, a Representative in Congress from the State of Indiana; Hon. Marcy Kaptur, a Representa- tive in Congress from the State of Ohio; Hon. Judy Biggert, a Representa- tive in Congress from the State of Illinois; Hon. Vito Fossella, a Representa- tive in Congress from the State of New York; Hon. Donald M. Payne, a Representative in Congress from the State of New Jersey; Hon. Joseph Crowley, a Representative in Congress from the State of New York; Hon. John W. Olver, a Representative in Congress from the State of Massachu- setts; Hon. Peter T. King, a Representative in Congress from the State of New York; Hon. Christopher H. Smith, a Representative in Congress from the State of New Jersey; Hon. Nita M. Lowey, a Representative in Congress from the State of New York; Hon. James P. McGovern, a Representative in Congress from the State of Massachusetts; Hon. David E. Bonior, a Representative in Congress from the State of Michigan; and Hon. James H. Maloney, a Representative in Congress from the State of Connecticut, joint letter ................................................................................... 7 JBC International, James Clawson, letter ............................................................ 8 National Albanian American Council, Ilir Zherka, statement ............................. 8 National Conference on Soviet Jewry, statement ................................................. 9 Union of Councils for Soviet Jews, Micah H. Naftalin, and Gideon Aronoff, letter and attachment .......................................................................................... 11 U.S.-Albanian Foundation, Jim Xhema, letter ...................................................... 14 iii VerDate 11-SEP-98 14:17 Dec 21, 1999 Jkt 060252 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 0486 Sfmt 0486 F:60252 W&M3 PsN: W&M3 ADVISORY FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS SUBCOMMITTEE ON TRADE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: (202) 225±1721 October 4, 1999 No. TR±16 Crane Announces Request for Written Comments on the Extension of Unconditional Normal Trade Relations to Albania, Armenia, Georgia, and Moldova Congressman Philip M. Crane (R±IL), Chairman, Subcommittee on Trade of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee is request- ing written public comments for the record from all parties interested in the exten- sion of unconditional normal trade relations (NTR) to Albania, Armenia, Georgia, and Moldova. BACKGROUND: At present, the trade status of Albania, Armenia, Georgia, and Moldova is subject to the Jackson-Vanik amendment to Title IV of the Trade Act of 1974 (P.L. 93±618), the provision of law governing the extension of NTR to nonmarket economy coun- tries ineligible for such status as of the enactment of the Trade Act. A country sub- ject to this provision may gain conditional NTR, including NTR tariff treatment, only by complying with the freedom-of-emigration criteria under the Trade Act and by concluding a bilateral commercial agreement with the United States providing for reciprocal nondiscriminatory treatment. The extension of NTR is also subject to Congressional approval. The Trade Act authorizes the President to waive the re- quirements for full compliance of the emigration criteria with respect to a particular country if he determines that such a waiver will substantially promote the freedom- of-emigration provisions and if he has received assurance that the emigration prac- tices of the country will lead substantially to the achievement of those objectives. On May 14, 1992, a bilateral trade agreement was signed with Albania, and on May 20th the President determined that a Jackson-Vanik waiver for Albania would substantially promote achievement of the emigration objectives in the statute. The waiver entered into force on June 3, 1992, under Executive Order 12908. A joint resolution approving of extension of conditional NTR, then known as most-favored- nation treatment, to Albania was enacted on August 26, 1992 (P.L. 102±363). NTR was first extended to Albania on November 2, 1992, following the exchange of writ- ten notices between the United States and Albania on the acceptance of the bilateral trade agreement. NTR continued under annual extensions of the Jackson-Vanik waiver until December 5, 1997, when Albania was found to be in full compliance with the statutory emigration criteria. Albania's compliance with these criteria re- (1) VerDate 11-SEP-98 14:17 Dec 21, 1999 Jkt 060252 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6621 F:60252 W&M3 PsN: W&M3 2 moves the need for continued waivers, although the country remains subject to the terms of the Jackson-Vanik amendment. On June 1, 1990, the United States concluded a bilateral trade agreement with the Soviet Union, which was approved by Congress in a joint resolution signed into law on December 9, 1991 (P.L. 102±197). In Proclamation 6352 of October 9, 1991, the President proclaimed that this agreement had entered into force and non- discriminatory treatment would be extended to the products of the Soviet Union. Subsequently, the Soviet Union was succeeded by 12 independent states including Armenia, Georgia, and Moldova. On April 6, 1992, the President issued Executive Order 12798 waiving the Jack- son-Vanik criteria with respect to Armenia. NTR was first extended to Armenia ef- fective April 7, 1992, following an exchange of diplomatic notes on that day applying the provisions of the bilateral agreement with the Soviet Union in a new bilateral trade agreement with Armenia. This was followed by a Presidential determination on April 13, 1992, that Armenia's waiver would substantially promote the emigra- tion objectives of the Trade Act. On May 6, 1992, the President determined that Jackson-Vanik waivers for Geor- gia and Moldova would substantially promote achievement of the freedom-of-emigra- tion criteria in the statute. This determination was followed on June 3, 1992,