The United States: Singapore Free Trade Agreement Highlights and Insights

Contents......Page 12
Foreword......Page 6
George Yeo, Minister for Trade and Industry, Singapore......Page 8
Stephen Lee, Chairman, Singapore Business Federation......Page 9
Hsuan Owyang, Chairman, Board of Governors, Institute of Policy Studies, Singapore......Page 11
List of Abbreviations......Page 16
Section I: Introduction......Page 22
1982: Bill Brock’s Proposal......Page 24
The Age of Multilateralism......Page 25
U.S.-Singapore Relations......Page 26
Golf Diplomacy in Brunei......Page 27
Singapore’s Reasons......Page 28
The U.S.’s Reasons......Page 29
IMPLICATIONS FOR ASEAN......Page 30
Uniqueness of U.S. Democracy......Page 31
U.S.’s Need for Time to Forge Consensus......Page 32
Necessity to Work with U.S. Business......Page 33
THE NEGOTIATING PROCESS......Page 34
BENEFITS OF THE USSFTA FOR SINGAPORE......Page 39
SIGNATURE AND RATIFICATION......Page 41
CONCLUSION......Page 42
INTRODUCTION......Page 44
PROCESS......Page 45
SUBSTANCE......Page 48
PROCESS PRODUCES RESULTS......Page 52
CONCLUSION......Page 53
3 Lessons from the USSFTA Negotiations Ong Ye Kung......Page 54
STAY TRUE TO OUR CONVICTION......Page 55
NEGOTIATE, NOT BARGAIN......Page 57
INTERNAL NEGOTIATIONS ARE HARDER......Page 59
CONCLUSION......Page 60
A LITTLE HISTORY......Page 62
THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION AND THE START OF NEGOTIATIONS......Page 64
TIMETABLES AND STOVEPIPES: WHAT KIND OF FTA?......Page 65
MOVING TOWARD PASSAGE......Page 69
THE UPSHOT......Page 71
C for Chewing Gum......Page 74
H for “How Can?”......Page 75
N for Non-Tariff Barriers......Page 76
T for Tariffs......Page 77
Z for Zoellick......Page 78
Section II: Selected Chapters of the Agreement......Page 80
SINGAPORE-U.S. TRADE RELATIONS......Page 82
TARIFF SAVINGS......Page 83
TARIFF: STAGING CATEGORIES......Page 84
MORE SAVINGS......Page 86
Value Add Rule (Local Content)......Page 87
OUTWARD PROCESSING......Page 89
INTEGRATED SOURCING INITIATIVE (ISI)......Page 90
NEGOTIATING PROCESS: A PERSONAL REFLECTION......Page 91
INTRODUCTION......Page 96
DIFFERENT SYSTEMS …......Page 97
CONVERGENCE ON COMMON ISSUES......Page 98
RISK MANAGEMENT......Page 99
DEFERRED PAYMENT......Page 100
TRADE ENFORCEMENT......Page 101
CONCLUSION......Page 103
INTRODUCTION......Page 104
TEXTILES AND APPAREL COVERAGE......Page 105
Made in Singapore......Page 106
Enhanced Customs Control......Page 108
Safeguard Actions......Page 110
Market Access Package......Page 111
Enforcement and Cooperation......Page 113
IMPLEMENTATION......Page 114
CONCLUSION......Page 115
INTRODUCTION......Page 116
OUR AMERICAN COUNTERPARTS......Page 117
TRADE RULES AND TODAY’S ICT LANDSCAPE......Page 118
Benefits......Page 119
Challenges......Page 121
A BOLD JOURNEY, A HAPPY DESTINATION......Page 124
THE STRATEGIC BACKDROP......Page 126
SINGAPORE: VITAL INTERESTS SAFEGUARDED......Page 127
UNITED STATES: ENHANCED ACCESS TO THE SINGAPORE MARKET......Page 129
IMPASSE OVER CAPITAL CONTROLS......Page 130
BREAKING THE DEADLOCK......Page 132
REFLECTIONS......Page 133
11 Competition Policy Minn Naing Oo......Page 136
LEGACIES AND PERCEPTIONS......Page 137
THE OBLIGATIONS......Page 139
Monopolies......Page 140
Transparency and Information Requests......Page 141
CONCLUSION......Page 142
SINGAPORE IN TRANSITION......Page 144
CHANGING THE RULES OF THE GAME......Page 146
THE PLAYERS......Page 147
THE CARDS ON THE TABLE......Page 148
Anti-circumvention Measures......Page 149
Parallel imports......Page 150
A LOOK BACK......Page 152
The IP Provisions in a Nutshell......Page 153
THE ROAD AHEAD......Page 154
SIGNIFICANCE AND OBJECTIVE OF THE USSFTA LABOUR CHAPTER......Page 156
CONTRIBUTORY FACTORS TO SUCCESSFUL CONCLUSION OF LABOUR CHAPTER......Page 157
SINGAPORE IN THE INTERNATIONAL ARENA......Page 158
Tripartism in Singapore......Page 159
NO MINIMUM WAGE IN SINGAPORE......Page 160
POSITIVE OUTCOMES......Page 161
JOINT STATEMENT SIGNED BETWEEN SNTUC AND AFL-CIO......Page 162
CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS......Page 163
ENVIRONMENTAL PHILOSOPHY......Page 164
ENVIRONMENTAL NEGOTIATIONS......Page 166
INHERENT CHALLENGES......Page 167
ENVIRONMENT CHAPTER......Page 168
LESSONS......Page 169
BIRTH OF A LEGAL TEAM......Page 172
THE LONG JOURNEY — THE WORK BEGINS......Page 173
NO RESPITE — THE WORK CONTINUES......Page 174
THE DISPUTE SETTLEMENT PROCESS......Page 175
Disputes to which the Dispute Settlement Mechanism Applies......Page 176
Public Views......Page 177
Report of Panel......Page 178
Non-Implementation : Compensation and Retaliation......Page 179
Compliance Review......Page 180
Section III: Getting the FTA through Congress......Page 182
16 Lobbying for the USSFTA Chan Heng Chee......Page 184
GETTING THE ELEMENTS IN PLACE......Page 186
LOBBYING FOR THE FTA......Page 192
WHY WERE THE RESULTS SO POSITIVE?......Page 195
ADVOCATES FOR THE ECONOMICS OF FREER TRADE......Page 198
PURSUING COMMERCIAL AND STRATEGIC INTERESTS......Page 199
ACTIVE PLAYERS IN THE NEGOTIATIONS......Page 201
PROFESSIONALS IN THE BUSINESS OF NEGOTIATIONS......Page 202
EFFECTIVE LOBBYING PARTNERS FOR THE USSFTA......Page 204
MULTI-FACETED STRENGTHS OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY......Page 206
CONCLUSION......Page 209
2000: EARLY BEGINNINGS......Page 212
2001: THE WISH LIST......Page 214
2001–2003: SEEKING THE SUPPORT OF WASHINGTON......Page 215
THE FACES OF TRADE......Page 217
SHARING THE INSIDERS’ VIEWS......Page 218
CLEARING THE FINAL HURDLE......Page 220
Section IV: Implementing the FTA......Page 222
INTRODUCTION......Page 224
THE PROCESS......Page 225
(a) Customs Duties......Page 226
(c) Import of Chewing Gum with Therapeutic Value......Page 227
(f) Enactment of a Generic Competition Law......Page 228
(g) Intellectual Property Laws......Page 229
(d) Chapter 9: Telecommunications......Page 230
(h) Chapters 17 and 18: Labour and Environment......Page 231
CONCLUSION......Page 232
20 The USSFTA: The Impact on Government-Linked Companies and Singapore’s Corporate Scene Vikram Khanna......Page 234
DIVESTMENT......Page 237
NEW INVESTMENTS......Page 243
COMPETITION LAW......Page 245
CONCLUSION......Page 247
Appendixes......Page 248
I Joint Statement by U.S. President Bill Clinton and Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, 16 November 2000......Page 250
II Singapore Congressional Caucus......Page 251
III USSFTA Coalition Members......Page 253
IV Joint Statement of the AFL-CIO and SNTUC......Page 258
V List of Articles and Annexes of the U.S.-Jordan Free Trade Agreement......Page 260
VI Members of the Singapore Negotiating Team......Page 263
VII The Singapore and U.S. Missions......Page 272
VIII Remarks by U.S. President George W. Bush and Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong at the Signing Ceremony of the USSFTA at the White House on 6 May 2003......Page 273
IX Temasek Charter......Page 279
Relationship with Temasek Companies......Page 280
Group A Businesses — Government Ownership and Control......Page 281
Group B Businesses — International / Regional Potential......Page 282
Rationalisation and Divestments......Page 283
X The USSFTA Article 2.12: Tariff Treatment of Non-originating Cotton and Man-made Fiber Apparel Goods......Page 284
XI Negotiators of the Goods/Rules of Origin/Safeguard Chapters......Page 287
XII Negotiators of the Customs Administration Chapter......Page 289
XIII Negotiators of the Textiles and Apparel Chapter......Page 290
XIV Negotiators of the Telecommunications and Electronic Commerce Chapter......Page 292
XV Singapore and U.S. Reach Agreement on the Issue of Free Transfer of Capital, 16 January 2003......Page 294
XVI Negotiators of the Financial Services Chapter......Page 296
XVII Negotiators of the Intellectual Property Rights Chapters......Page 297
XVIII Negotiators of the Labour Chapter......Page 299
XIX List of Singapore Laws and Regulations Relating to the USSFTA (As of 11 March 2004)......Page 300
XX Joint Declaration on the Proposed U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement, 17 January 2001......Page 301
XXI Listing of U.S. Trade Advisory Committees......Page 303
XXII A Chronology of the USSFTA......Page 305