Termination of Action and Monitoring: European Communities' Regime for the Importation, Sale and Distribution of Bananas

요약

Pursuant to authority under section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended, on April 19, 1999, the United States Trade Representative (Trade Representative) imposed 100 percent ad valorem duties on a list of products of certain member States of the European Communities (EC) as a result of the EC's failure to implement the recommendations and rulings of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Dispute Settlement Body concerning the EC's regime for the importation, sale and distribution of bananas. On April 11, 2001, the United States and the EC announced an understanding in the Bananas dispute. Pursuant to that understanding, the EC is taking steps to provide greater market access to U.S. banana distributors, and the Trade Representative is terminating the 100 percent ad valorem duties on the list of EC products. The Trade Representative will monitor the EC's compliance with the understanding, and in particular, whether the EC modifies certain tariff rate quotas by January 1, 2002. Should the EC fail to do so, the Trade Representative may again take action under Section 301.