USTR Textile Negotiator Skips Hawaii TPP Round, Textile Talks with Vietnam Nearly Done
U.S. Trade Representative chief textile negotiator Gail Strickler didn’t show up for the March 9-15 Hawaii round of Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations and her absence was widely noticed among stakeholders, industry officials said the day after the talks concluded. While notable, industry lobbyists differed on the impact of her absence. Nonetheless, textile talks with Vietnam are almost finished, said one lobbyist.
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Strickler's presence at the negotiating round, which brought together all TPP chief negotiations for specific rules and market sectors, could have resulted in more progress, said an industry lobbyist. “Gail Strickler’s absence spoke volumes about USTR’s expectations of making big progress in Hawaii,” the lobbyist said. “You simply can’t make significant concessions without your chief, politically-appointed negotiator present.”
Another lobbyist questioned, though, if Strickler’s failure to show up damaged the bilateral talks, instead saying she’s been marginalized in the agency for a while. That lobbyist said Strickler has frustrated a range of stakeholders, and has only spearheaded short supply talks recently. Doug Bell, an assistant USTR that focuses on market access and rules of origin, has filled Strickler’s shoes in other areas of textile talks, said that lobbyist. Her absence could have been a top-level USTR decision, said the lobbyist. The Office of the USTR didn’t respond for comment.
USTR has insisted on a yarn forward rule of origin for Vietnamese imports, but industry has pushed an expanded short-supply list and other ways to ease commercial flow, known as “flexibilities” (see 14081105). The short supply list draws together some exempted inputs, but the yarn forward rule aims to ensure a product's inputs are sourced from the exporting country. The textile talks with Vietnam are nearly completed, said one lobbyist. “The labor situation with Vietnam is the most significant outstanding issue now, I’d say,” he said. “Textiles is pretty much closed. Now it’s coming down to the nature of the flexibilities to the yarn forward rule … whether there’s TPLs or other flexibilities [in a final agreement].” Many observers think the parties can close a deal at some point in 2015 (see 1503110066). Labor is one chapter under negotiation.