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On January 23, 2015, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced that USTR Michael Froman formally delivered the United States’ letter of acceptance of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) to the WTO Director-General Azevêdo. The TFA is part of the Bali package — the first multilateral agreement to be adopted by the WTO in 20 years. The U.S. joins Hong Kong and Singapore, which had previously notified the WTO of their acceptance of the TFA. The TFA will have its greatest impact in developing economies where Customs related delays and complicated rules are common. The TFA had been adopted unanimously in Bali, but stalled over India’s refusal to agree to its adoption when the first formal vote came up. The deadlock ended when India and the U.S. reached an agreement that would protect developing countries’ food security measures from WTO legal challenges. The Trade Facilitation Agreement will enter into force once two-thirds of the WTO’s 160 Members have completed their domestic legal procedures and submitted instruments of acceptance to the WTO. |
