[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 51 (Thursday, March 16, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Page 14329]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-6473]



=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE


Request for Comments Concerning GATS Basic Telecommunications 
Negotiations

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Request for comments concerning commitments to be sought in 
negotiations on basic telecommunications services at the World Trade 
Organization.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is 
soliciting public comment on the requests to be made to U.S. 
negotiating partners in the Negotiating Group on Basic 
Telecommunications of the General Agreement on Trade in Services 
(GATS). The GATS is one of the Uruguay Round agreements administered by 
the World Trade Organization. Interested persons are invited to submit 
their comments on market-opening commitments that should be sought in 
the basic telecommunications sector by April 15, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
William Corbett, Office of Services, Investment and Intellectual 
Property, Office of the United States Trade Representative, at (202) 
395-4510 or Laura B. Sherman, Office of the General Counsel, Office of 
the United States Trade Representative, at (202) 395-3150.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Negotiating Group on Basic 
Telecommunications (NGBT) was created in April 1994 by the Marrakesh 
Ministerial Decision. The Decision states that ``negotiations shall be 
entered into on a voluntary basis with a view to the progressive 
liberalization of trade in telecommunications transport networks and 
services within the framework of the General Agreement on Trade in 
Services'' (GATS). The NGBT is responsible for holding sectoral 
negotiations on basic telecommunications services; it has a deadline 
for completing talks by April 30, 1996.
    The United States is in the process of preparing requests for 
market-opening commitments from other countries participating in the 
NGBT, a list of which is attached. These requests must be submitted by 
the end of April 1995.
    The United States objective in the negotiations is to obtain levels 
of openness in the telecom markets of other participants equivalent to 
the level in the United States. Interested persons are invited to 
submit their comments on market-opening commitments that the United 
States should request from participating countries. Such commitments 
may include wire or wireless communications, regulatory schemes, 
interconnection issues, foreign ownership restrictions, and competition 
safeguards, among other things.
    Comments should be filed no later than April 15, 1995. Comments 
must be in English and provided in twenty copies to Mr. William 
Corbett, Office of Services, Investment and Intellectual Property, 
Office of the United States Trade Representative, 600 17th Street, 
Washington, D.C. 20506.
Frederick L. Montgomery,
Chairman, Trade Policy Staff Committee.

Countries Involved in the NGBT

    Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Cuba, Cyprus, Dominican 
Republic, France, Germany, Denmark, United Kingdom, Italy, Ireland, 
Sweden, Austria, Finland, Spain, Greece, Portugal, Netherlands, 
Luxembourg, Belgium, Egypt, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Japan, 
Mauritius, Korea, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Norway, Slovak 
Republic, Switzerland, Tunisia, Turkey, United States, Brazil, Brunei, 
China, Chinese Taipei, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Ecuador, 
El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Iceland, Indonesia, Israel, Jamaica, 
Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Panama, 
Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russian Federation, Singapore, Slovenia, 
South Africa, Thailand, Trinidad & Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela.

[FR Doc. 95-6473 Filed 3-15-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-01-M