GSP punch will hurt, says new US envoy, but better times ahead

[webfact]

GSP punch will hurt, says new US envoy, but better times ahead

By Wichit Chaitrong
The Nation

 

Newly appointed United States Ambassador to Thailand Michael G DeSombre 

 

Newly appointed United States Ambassador to Thailand Michael G DeSombre told reporters on Wednesday (March 11) that US companies will be more comfortable after the US presidential election in November about moving their facilities out of China and into Southeast Asia.

 

But he warned that Thailand will likely lose a third of its trade privileges under the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) next month because it is unwilling to change its labour laws, as Washington demands.

 

Asked about the impact of the US-China trade conflict on the Thai economy, DeSombre noted that the two countries had completed Phase 1 of negotiations on a trade agreement and the US was looking forward to closing out Phase 2.

 

In Southeast Asia, Vietnam in particular has benefited from US companies relocating facilities from China, he said.

 

Once the new US government is in place early next year, he plans to encourage more US firms to move their factories to Thailand and the region. Some are interested in investing in Thailand’s Eastern Economic Corridor and other parts of the country, he said.

 

Washington is poised to revoke GSP import tax privileges for Thai products next month because of what it considers substandard labour practices here. The value of those privileges has been put at $1.3 billion, covering more than 500 categories of exported products.

 

The revocation comes into effect on April 25.

 

 “This has been a long process, and to avoid that removal of the preferences would require various changes to labour laws that the Royal Thai Government was not willing to do. 

 

“So, at this stage, there really is no opportunity to prevent the loss of the preferences. It is important to note, however, that even after the loss of that one-third Thailand will still be the largest beneficiary of the GSP at over $3.4 billion. So, it has to be kept in perspective,”  DeSombre said. 

 

Lobbyists and non-governmental organisations persuaded US policymakers that Thai labour laws failed to meet international standards, instead denying workers wage bargaining power and the right of assembly.

 

Regarding the string of pro-democracy protests being waged by students nationwide, DeSombre said the US supports democracy but “does not choose sides”, rather letting sovereign nations develop their own systems of democracy. “Democracy is messy and challenging,” he said.

 

Because of bipartisan politics at home, he does expect the post-election US government to remain as deeply committed to the Asia-Pacific region. Republicans and Democrats advocate similar Pacific strategies. 

 

He plans to invite members of Thailand’s Parliament to visit the US Congress to observe how democracy work there.

 

DeSombre said the US will strengthen trade and investment with Thailand based on the Treaty of Amity and Economic Relations signed in 1966.

 

Washington will also continue to press Bangkok on security cooperation and sub-regional Mekong development, he said.

 

The Bangkok embassies of the US and Canada and the European Union in Brussels recently raised concerns over the Constitutional Court’s ruling that the Future Forward Party had to be dissolved.

 

The foreign governments said the verdict had the potential to disenfranchise the party’s six million supporters in the 2019 polls of their political rights. 

 

US President Donald Trump has postponed a planned US-Asean summit in Washington. He had invited Asean leaders to meet him in Washington in the first quarter of this year in lieu of his attending the Asean Summit in Bangkok in November.

 

President Trump nominated Michael G DeSombre to be ambassador to Thailand last July and his posting was confirmed by the US Senate this past January 8.

 

He previously worked as a partner in the law firm of Sullivan and Cromwell, in charge of mergers and acquisitions in Asia.

 

DeSombre has more than two decades of experience representing and negotiating on behalf of American and international clients in large-scale investment and economic-development projects in Asia, gaining insight into the political, legal and strategic challenges that face American interests in the region. 

 

He graduated from Stanford University with a bachelor’s degree in quantitative economics and a master’s in East Asian studies and received his doctorate of jurisprudence from Harvard Law School. He is married with four children.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/business/30383862

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-03-12

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[bangkokfrog]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

...he warned that Thailand will likely lose a third of its trade privileges under the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) next month because it is unwilling to change its labour laws, as Washington demands.

Chickens coming home to roost. Vietnam going up, Thailand going down. 

 

1 hour ago, webfact said:

He plans to invite members of Thailand’s Parliament to visit the US Congress to observe how democracy work there.

Interesting to see who will get an invite. I know of one deputy minister who wouldn't even get a visa because of overseas drug convictions. Also, I wonder who would be interested (other than as a shopping junket)  in learning how democracy works in the US. In Thailand it is currently about who has the most guns; in the US it is currently about who has the most money. In both cases the public are easily sucked in.

Edited March 11, 2020 by bangkokfrog

[DLock]

...and the hits just keep coming...

 

Excellent.

[exparte]

Wow! An Ambassador who seems to know what he is talking about. Thailand has played the "we are a poor country" card for too long. The Elite's in Thailand have been sucking Thailand dry for too long; and it is getting noticed. Hopefully the new Generation of Thai's will overcome generations of Salve Mentality.