[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 81 (Friday, June 17, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1265]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       BOEING-AIRBUS WTO DISPUTE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSEPH CROWLEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 16, 2005

  Mr. CROWLEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak today concerning the recent 
dispute between Airbus and Boeing, which has developed into a clash 
between the European Union and the United States.
  The dispute is long and complicated and both sides are convinced they 
are right. Nevertheless, one incontrovertible fact remains: the EC/EU 
have given Airbus massive subsidies over the past three decades, which 
Airbus used to buy market share and skew competition against U.S. 
companies, mainly Boeing.
  The 1992 US-EC Agreement outlined the maximum amount of governmental 
support and subsidies a state could provide in aircraft production, 
while calling for progressively reducing subsidies. Further, Airbus 
agreed to provide a considerable amount of transparency in their 
business dealings, a standard they continue to ignore when it is not 
completely advantageous to them. The 1992 agreement presented Airbus 
with the best option, but they failed to abide by its terms. As a 
result, the U.S. terminated the 1992 agreement in October, 2004 and, 
looked to the WTO as the/international body to address this trade 
matter.
  The EU continues to provide Airbus with massive subsidies, which 
undermine the ability of Boeing to compete on a level field. If the EU 
continues to write off billions of euros in Airbus debt, how can Boeing 
fairly compete?
  Despite Europe's repeated flaunting of the terms of the 1992 
agreement, the US pressed the EU to commit itself to fairer trade 
policies. As we all know, the EU refused to back down and continued 
their hard line stance regarding aircraft subsidies.
  Reluctantly, the U.S. government filed papers with the WTO so that a 
panel of judges could hear the complaint, a step our government does 
not take lightly. We would prefer to arrive at a private understanding 
with the EU, one that does not resort to this WTO panel. However, the 
ED's insistence on continuing to provide massive subsidies and refusing 
to reach a compromise, have forced us to act.
  I fully support the US government and Boeing in their dispute with 
the EU and Airbus. I believe that the EU must cease providing massive 
subsidies, which undermine competition and unfairly undercut Boeing. 
American workers can compete with anyone in the world. I'm only asking 
that this Congress and the Administration do everything possible to 
make sure that the competition is fair and equal for both sides.

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