Burma, Laos and Cambodia get tariff

[moe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Subject: Burma, Laos and Cambodia get tariff-rate reprieve  9/5/97

Burma, Laos and Cambodia get tariff-rate reprieve 



     BANGKOK -- Asean has agreed to allow Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar to
     postpone until 2008 the cutting of their respective tariff rates to
less than 5 per cent to
     integrate the three into the Asean Free Trade Area (Afta) trading bloc,
a Thai
     government official said on Wednesday. 

     The Asean member states are seeking to fully establish by 2003 the Afta
regime, under
     which signatories would offer preferential tariff treatments to each
other by holding
     down mutual tariffs on all products to less than 5 per cent. 

     However, the Asean (Association of South-east Asian Nations) members
agreed to
     apply more lenient terms to Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar in terms of the
timing of
     meeting the requirement that Afta members' import duties be reduced to
the range
     between zero and 5 per cent, the Thai Commerce Ministry official said. 

     "If Asean can reach a political decision to admit Cambodia, Laos and
Myanmar in July,
     the time frame for the Afta (tariff rule) implementation of the three
new members would
     be Jan 1, 2008, as economic officials agreed in a preliminary
discussion," the official
     said. 

     He was referring to a secret agreement in March among Asean member
states and the
     three countries to allow the trio to put off the timing of the tariff
cutbacks, at a meeting
     of trade officials on the Indonesian island of Bali. 

     Having the three countries pledge to implement tariff cutback plans by
a definite
     deadline year has been deemed a crucial prerequisite by Asean member
states, before
     Asean agrees to grant the trio membership. 

     The three are now drawing up respective lists of products which they
will agree to
     submit to tariff cutback obligations, starting next year, on the
assumption that Asean
     will agree to admit the trio during a meeting of association foreign
ministers slated for
     July in Malaysia, Asean sources said. 

     The Thai official warned, however, that the three may postpone the
timing of
     implementing their tariff cutback programmes further if Asean members
fail to agree to
     admit them during the July conference. 

     "The time frame would be rescheduled if Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar fail
to enter
     Asean in July," he said. 

     Asean members except Vietnam plan to implement the tariff cutback
programmes
     under the Common Effective Preferential Tariff scheme for Afta by 2003.
The scheme
     is to be implemented over a 10-year period that started on Jan 1, 1993. 

     Vietnam, which joined Asean in 1995, has been given more lenient terms
than other
     members in implementing its tariff cutback programme, planning to do so
by 2006. 

     Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar are scheduled to submit their lists of
products to be
     subjected to tariff cutback programmes for endorsement by Asean
economic ministers,
     who will meet in Malaysia in October, the official said. 

     "Only a political decision" remains to be made, an analyst said in
reference to the
     expected accession by the three into Asean. 

     Asean foreign ministers will meet informally in Kuala Lumpur on May 31
to discuss
     accession of the three countries in view of an assessment report now
being prepared
     by the Asean Secretariat, the official said. 

     Leaders of Asean, want to bring in the three countries simultaneously
by the year 2000.
     -- Kyodo.