Letter to The Honorable Robert J. Portman, United States Trade Representative
Letter to The Honorable Robert J. Portman, United States Trade Representative
June 23, 2005
The Honorable Robert J. Portman
United States Trade Representative
Winder Building, 600 17th Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20508
Dear Ambassador Portman:
We are writing with respect to your review of the Administration's trade policy toward China.
During your confirmation hearing in April, you indicated that you would conduct a top-to-bottom
review of our ongoing trade issues with China. We understand that you have since visited China, and
that key personnel responsible for the China portfolio in your office are in China right now working
on our outstanding issues. We applaud your prompt attention to this very important matter. Serious
challenges remain with respect to China's compliance record, and many U.S. businesses are still not
able to maximize their opportunities in the Chinese market. Five areas remain of particular concern,
i.e. intellectual property rights, agriculture, services, industrial policies, and procurement.
China must significantly improve its enforcement of intellectual property rights protections.
Similarly, China must improve the transparency of trade in agricultural goods and trade in services.
In particular, China must implement outstanding services commitments, such as those distribution
services commitments which came due in December 2004. In addition, China must not resort to
industrial policies that limit market access for non-Chinese origin goods and services, or that aim
to extract technology and intellectual property from foreign rights-holders. And finally, given
troubling signs in the direction of China's procurement policies, China must begin the process of
joining the WTO Government Procurement Agreement.
We expect that you will raise these and other outstanding issues with China during the next meeting
of the Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade. In addition, we request that you appear before
the Finance Committee after you complete your review. The Committee expects to be kept informed
of developments in the Administration's trade policy toward China.
Again, we appreciate the seriousness with which you are approaching this very important matter. We
look forward to working with you to ensure that U.S. farmers, ranchers, manufacturers, and service
providers, fully realize the benefits of China's membership in the World Trade Organization and
integration into the global economy.
Sincerely,
Charles E. Grassley Max Baucus
Chairman Ranking Member
http://finance.senate.gov/press/Gpress/2005/prg062305b.pdf