[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 84 (Friday, May 19, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1081]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


             IN OPPOSITION TO TRADE SANCTIONS AGAINST JAPAN

                                 ______


                           HON. JIM McDERMOTT

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 18, 1995
  Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, the unsatisfactory outcome of almost 2 
years of bilateral negotiations on access to the Japanese automotive 
market is disappointing.
  However, unilateral imposition of 6 billion dollars' worth of 
sanctions on Japanese products by the United States is a dangerous and 
unworkable solution.
  Under the rules and procedures of the WTO, if any member country 
feels that it has been wronged, it has an obligation to go to the WTO 
first before applying sanctions and certainly not in concert with the 
application of sanctions.
  If the administration continues to insist that imposition of punitive 
sanctions against Japanese luxury cars is the best way to force Japan 
to open its markets, the United States should set an example for the 
rest of our trading partners and file a WTO complaint against Japan.
  Let's take advantage of the WTO's dispute settlement procedure, which 
we helped negotiate.
  Unilateral imposition of sanctions by the United States against the 
Japanese sends the message to the rest of the world that we have no 
confidence in the WTO's ability to decide the case fairly.
  Let's not restrict free trade in the United States in an effort to 
open up markets abroad. Punitive sanctions that have the potential to 
cost thousands of United States jobs in a very short period of time and 
do nothing to achieve our goal of opening up the Japanese automotive 
market are not the answer.


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