ID :
61755
Thu, 05/21/2009 - 21:12
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/61755
The shortlink copeid
Vietnam`s Ambassador to the US sends letters nearly 140 US congressmen
Washington D.C (VNA) - Vietnam's Ambassador to the US, Le Cong Phung, has sent
letters to nearly 140 US congressmen asking them to look into the US Agriculture
Department's draft rules relating to Vietnam’s pangasius (“tra” and
“basa”) fish.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is required under the US Food, Conservation
and Energy Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-246) to promulgate regulations to govern the
inspection of "catfish" by the USDA.
The USDA is in the final stages of drafting new regulations to create a new
definition of "catfish" and is considering to include Vietnamese tra and basa fish
in this definition.
The Ambassador drew the US congressmen’s attention to the fact that in 2002 the US
Congress prevented Vietnam from calling tra and basa as "catfish".
According to the diplomat, the P.L. 110-246, which the US government said would
only serve to raise safety of foods imported into the US , was described by the
public as creation of new barriers to trade in goods and services.
He said if the USDA decides to include "tra" and "basa" in its definition of
"catfish", it would not only call into question the US WTO’s commitments but also
endanger the opportunity for normal employment of more than 1 million farmers and
workers in Vietnam as well as significantly impact the bilateral relations between
Vietnam and the United States.
The Vietnamese Ambassador therefore urged US congressmen to look into the matter and
asked the USDA not to put Vietnamese pangasius into the definition of
"catfish".-Enditem
letters to nearly 140 US congressmen asking them to look into the US Agriculture
Department's draft rules relating to Vietnam’s pangasius (“tra” and
“basa”) fish.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is required under the US Food, Conservation
and Energy Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-246) to promulgate regulations to govern the
inspection of "catfish" by the USDA.
The USDA is in the final stages of drafting new regulations to create a new
definition of "catfish" and is considering to include Vietnamese tra and basa fish
in this definition.
The Ambassador drew the US congressmen’s attention to the fact that in 2002 the US
Congress prevented Vietnam from calling tra and basa as "catfish".
According to the diplomat, the P.L. 110-246, which the US government said would
only serve to raise safety of foods imported into the US , was described by the
public as creation of new barriers to trade in goods and services.
He said if the USDA decides to include "tra" and "basa" in its definition of
"catfish", it would not only call into question the US WTO’s commitments but also
endanger the opportunity for normal employment of more than 1 million farmers and
workers in Vietnam as well as significantly impact the bilateral relations between
Vietnam and the United States.
The Vietnamese Ambassador therefore urged US congressmen to look into the matter and
asked the USDA not to put Vietnamese pangasius into the definition of
"catfish".-Enditem