No Near Term Resolution to US Beef Controversy

No Near Term Resolution to US Beef Controversy
China Times editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC)
A Translation
March 3, 2012

Summary: The U.S. beef imports issue is not merely a food safety issue. It is a Taipei/Washington trade issue, Many political and diplomatic considerations are involved. Many parties are involved. It has gone far beyond the technical realm. The problem cannot be resolved overnight. Sanchez is not coming this time. Maybe that is just as well. The bickering continues. Better not allow it to further undermine relations between Taipei and Washington.

Full Text below:

Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco . Sanchez was scheduled to arrive in Taipei on March 4th for a three-day visit. But his trip was suddenly canceled. Washington said the cancellation was due to "unforeseen circumstances." It declined to specify the reason. But it also issued a press release criticizing our government's decision to ban the import of US beef containing clenbuterol or ractopamine. Sanchez was of course coming to promote U.S. beef exports to Taiwan. Beef exports are not just American agricultural products. They even affect U.S. trade policy and domestic U.S. politics.

The AIT previously issued a press release, announcing that Sanchez was coming to Taiwan. It stressed that the purpose of Sanchez's trip was to promote Obama's "export multiplier" plan. Beef is an important part of the plan.

Since the 2008 financial crisis, the United States has sought to reverse the trade deficit. President Obama's State of the Union address on January 10 included a plan to double exports by mid-2014. The plan is directed mainly at farmers and SMEs. It hopes to create two million jobs. Over the past several years, Washington has been unhappy with the way Taipei dealt with the beef issue. The two sides finally signed a protocol in mid-2009, But the Legislative Yuan changed its content. In 2011 Washington was about to send people to talk about TIFA when the clenbuterol and ractopamine controversy erupted. Bilateral economic and trade relations have been frozen ever since.

WikiLeaks Taiwan indicates that Washington has complained about Taipei's attitude again and again. The administration and congress have dealt with the matter in chaotic fashion. Each year the American Chamber of Commerce makes its annual visit to Washington. Members heard senior officials openly accuse Taipei of being an unreliable trading partner. In fact, U.S. beef imports last year were valued at 310 million USD. Taiwan's imports of U.S. goods were a mere 17%. They were so small as to be insignficant. But it has become a symbolic issue. Washington is angry. It is determined to force Taipei to agree.

We think Washington is insufferably arrogant. It is insisting that Taipei accept agricultural products harmful to the public's health. The U.S. beef issue affects the middle class the most. The middle class is the most concerned about food safety, US pressure has led to a powerful backlash that transcends Blue vs. Green partisanship. It is not something the ruling party can contain.

Ma Ying-jeou has been elected to a second term. This offers us a new opportunity. Taipei attaches great importance to Sanchez's visit. This means that regularly scheduled TIFA meetings, suspended since mid-2007, may be restored, This means that initial consultations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are now possible.

But the Legislative Yuan passed a resolution yesterday, saying that the Executive Yuan may not issue an executive order permitting imports. That means imports before June of this year are impossible. The Executive Yuan's panel of experts is subject to outside pressure, The entire meeting must be made public. As a result those who favor the inclusion of clenbuterol or ractopamine are afraid to speak up. As a result, Sanchez suddenly canceled his trip to Taiwan two days before it was scheduled to take place.

Consider the bigger picture. The U.S. beef import controversy is not an isolated phenomenon. South Korean protests have been the most vehement of all. But a free trade agreement is a powerful incentive. The Lee Myung-bak government rammed beef imports through. Japan is still reviewing the matter. Washington is particulary concerned bout the clenbuterol or ractopamine issue. It has ulterior motives. It wants to lay the groundwork. Its real target is Mainland China. Beijing imposes across the board restrictions on U.S. meat imports. Clenbuterol and ractopamine are categorically prohibited. Taipei's handling of the matter will set a precedent. It will have a major impact on whether Beijing opens its markets to U.S. beef.

South Korea initially imposed a 40% tariff on U.S. beef imports. After the two sides signed a free trade agreement, the U.S. Congress refused to ratify the treaty because of the tariff. It insisted that FTAs be unfettered. South Korea was forced to reduce the tariff incrementally year to year. That enabled a free trade agreement to take effect on the 15th of this month. Japan still imposes many restrictions on U.S. beef. Every time diplomats and trade officials from the two sides meet, beef imports come up. Late last year, Japan finally agreed to permit beef imports. Washington is using PTTs as a carrot. Its position is, "No US beef, no PTT." This is not merely an administration bargaining chip. It is evidence of pressure from members of Congress. Sanchez still intends to visit Japan. Washington is applying pressure on Tokyo, just as it is applying pressure on Taipei. The U.S. beef industry lobby is extremely powerful. Unlike other industries, the American Meat Association focuses its efforts on select members of Congress and regulatory agencies. As a result it is able to block new meat safety requirements with fewer political contributions. Regulatory agencies whose function was to consumer protection, end up favoring industry. This is true for U.S. consumers. It is even more true for consumers in other countries.

This year is an election year in the US, The theme of the election is job creation, Agricultural state legislators continue to pressure the federal government to find new markets. Congressmen and the President face election pressures, The pressure on the Commerce Department and the State Department is particularly intense, They must produce results.

The U.S. beef imports issue is not merely a food safety issue. It is a Taipei/Washington trade issue, Many political and diplomatic considerations are involved. Many parties are involved. It has gone far beyond the technical realm. The problem cannot be resolved overnight. Sanchez is not coming this time. Maybe that is just as well. The bickering continues. Better not allow it to further undermine relations between Taipei and Washington.

中時電子報 新聞
中國時報 　2012.03.03
社論－美牛風暴暫時無解 桑傑士不來也好
本報訊

美國商務部次長桑傑士原訂四日來台訪問三天，行程卻突然取消，美方以「一些突發狀況」，不願說明取消原因，但是同時也發出新聞稿，抨擊我方主管機關禁止含瘦肉精牛肉進口的決定。桑傑士來台當然是與美國牛肉銷台有關，但牛肉出口不僅僅是一項美國農產品，這也與美國目前的貿易政策，甚至美國內部的政治整體相關。

ＡＩＴ在之前宣布桑傑士來台的新聞稿中，就特別點出，桑傑士此行的目的，就是在推廣歐巴馬的「出口倍增」計畫，而牛肉是其中重要的部分。

自從二○○八年金融危機後，美國要扭轉貿易入超，歐巴馬總統在二○一○年一月的國情咨文中宣布出口倍增計畫，要在二○一四年年底前，增加出口一倍，主要集中在農民與中小企業，以期增加二百萬個工作機會。這些年來，美方對台灣處理牛肉問題的方式是很不滿的，因為好不容易在二○○九年簽定議定書，立法院又對內容大修改，等到二○一一年美國準備派人來談ＴＩＦＡ前夕，卻發生瘦肉精問題，雙邊經貿關係僵持至今。

從《維基解密台灣》中，我們看到，美國一再抱怨台灣的態度翻來覆去，政府與國會處理的程序錯亂，美僑商會每年一度拜訪華盛頓時，甚至聽到高層官員直指台灣是「不可靠的貿易夥伴」，其實美國牛肉去年進口總值大約美金約三億一千萬元，僅占台灣進口美貨的一.一七％，比重微不足道，但是儼然現在成為象徵性的議題，美方動了意氣，一定要台灣同意。

但我們卻認為，美國太過頤指氣使，硬要台灣接受對健康有害的農產品，美牛議題牽動中產階級最關切的食品安全，民意的強烈反彈，事實上已經超越藍綠，不是執政黨所能夠完全主導的。

馬英九當選第二任後，是一個新的處理契機，而桑傑士的訪問，更受到台灣方面高度重視，不僅這代表了自二○○七年以來停頓的ＴＩＦＡ的固定會晤可以恢復，而且可進一步開始「跨太平洋夥伴」（ＴＰＰ）的初步諮商。

然而立法院院會日前決議，行政院不得逕行以命令開放進口，讓今年六月之前開放成為不可能，而行政院專家小組又迫於外界壓力，全程公開會議，這使得贊成添加瘦肉精的意見不敢表達出來，也讓桑傑士在訪台前兩天突然宣布取消行程。

美國與台灣的牛肉進口爭議，擴大來看，並不是特例，韓國抗爭最強烈，但是在自由貿易協定的引誘下，李明博政府強力通過，日本至今仍在檢討當中；但美國對台灣的瘦肉精議題特別在意，因為項莊舞劍，意在沛公，真正的目標是中國大陸，目前中國大陸對美國肉品全面設限，也絕對禁用瘦肉精，未來對美牛開放市場時，台灣處理的先例會有很大的影響。

南韓原本對美國牛肉還有四○％的關稅，雙方簽定自由貿易協定之後，美國國會以此拒不批准，堅持ＦＴＡ不能設限，南韓被迫逐年同意逐年遞減，才使得自由貿易協定在本月十五日生效通過。日本目前對美國牛肉仍然有諸多限制，每次雙方外長與商務貿易部長會談時，開放美牛必然是討論項目。去年年底日本終於同意要檢討開放問題，這是因為美國用ＰＴＴ來誘惑，「不開放美牛，就沒有ＰＴＴ」，這不僅是行政當局的籌碼，也是國會議員施壓的依據。而仍在日本訪問的桑傑士，也像對台灣一樣，正在對日本施壓。美國牛肉相關業者是非常有力的遊說團體，不同於其他產業，美國肉類協會是把力量集中在少數國會議員與管制機構上，從而以較少的政治獻金，達到阻擋新肉類安全規定的目的，而應該是保護消費者的管制機構，反而是非常偏向產業，對美國消費者都還如此，更遑論其他國家的消費者了。

今年是美國大選年，增加就業率成為選戰焦點，農業州議員不斷要求美國政府要開拓市場，議員與總統都有選票的壓力，所以施加在商務部與國務院上的壓力也特別大，必須要交出成績來。

可以說，美國牛肉進口問題，需要衡量的已經不只是民眾食品安全，以及台美貿易關係，其中有非常多的政治與外交考量，而且各方牽涉其中，已經超越專業的範疇；既然問題一時三刻無法解決，桑傑士這次不來也好，免得在抗爭之下，台美雙邊關係不必要的惡化。