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To: Ruffian who wrote (67812)	2/24/2000 12:09:00 AM
From: LBstocks	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 152472

Sen. Breaux Calls For Senate Vote On China By Brian Krebs, Newsbytes WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 23 Feb 2000, 5:58 PM CST Sen. John B. Breaux, D-La., said he thinks the Senate could move to a vote and pass the extension of permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) to China, a move he said would put pressure on the House to take similar steps. Breaux said the main source of opposition on extending PNTR to China - namely, human rights concerns - could best be addressed once China joins the World Trade Organization (WTO), to which the United States gave its nod late last year. Breaux made his comments at a luncheon sponsored by Nortel Networks, which recently won a lucrative telecommunications contract with the Chinese government. Breaux and five other Democratic senators sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., and Minority Leader Tom Dashcle, S-SD, urging them to bring legislation to the floor granting PNTR to China as soon as possible. "It is imperative that Congress move quickly to grant permanent NTR status so that US workers and companies can take advantage of the market access provisions and other benefits provided for in the bilateral agreement," the letter stated. U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky - also at the luncheon - echoed those sentiments, saying that giving China PNTR would be essential if the US is reap the benefits of bilateral trade agreements it has reached with China. But according to one high-level Senate Democrat, China may have to wait until it has allowed into the WTO - or at least until protocol access and bilateral and multilateral agreements are completed - before members of Congress and the Senate Finance Committee become convinced it is necessary to grant PNTR. Among the concessions affecting the high-tech sector is China's agreement to allow foreign investment in China's telecommunications and Internet market. On that note, a number of industry leaders weighed in the issue today as well. Members of the US High Technology Industry Coalition on China appeared before the Senate Finance Committee today urging Congress to approve PNTR for China "to ensure that the U.S high-tech industry can "reap the benefits" from China's entry into the WTO. In addressing the committee, Motorola Chairman and CEO Chris Galvin said that "no issue currently before Congress will have a greater impact on the high tech community, and America's ability to compete in the New Economy than China's accession to the WTO and the market opening that it brings." Galvin - whose company operates the largest wholly foreign-owned subsidiary in China - warned that a vote against PNTR does not stop China's entry, but rather gives European and Japanese companies an advantage in the market place that will be immediate, hobbling American exports for years to come. A collection of intellectual property associations also put their two cents in today with a letter to Congress denouncing the suggestion that China's intellectual property track record constitutes a justification for congressional rejection of PNTR this year. The letter - signed by the Business Software Alliance, International Intellectual Property Association, Motion Picture Association of America, and the Recording Industry Association of America, among others - argued that the IP industries are strongly behind granting PNTR to China. In fact, the groups wrote, "the most effective way to make further improvements in China's record on intellectual property rights protection is to approve PNTR and China's accession to the World Trade Organization." The groups also suggested establishing regular hearings to ensure that China is meeting its obligations, in particular, the enforcement obligations included in the TRIPs agreement, as part of China's entry into the WTO. Reported by Newsbytes.com, newsbytes.com . 17:58 CST Reposted 19:35 CST