Posted on 08/16/2005 12:09:54 PM PDT by proud_yank
Canada suspends softwood talks with U.S. Last Updated Tue, 16 Aug 2005 13:47:58 EDT CBC News
Canada has suspended softwood lumber talks with the United States to protest America's refusal to heed a NAFTA ruling that sided with the Canadian position. A scheduled meeting that was to start the next round of talks in the dispute has been cancelled, with no hint of when talks might resume.
"Following consultations with provincial governments, and in light of the U.S. response to the Aug. 10 decision of the NAFTA extraordinary challenge committee, the government of Canada has decided to not proceed with the negotiations planned for next week," International Trade Minister Jim Peterson said in a news release Tuesday.
"The government of Canada will continue to consult with industry stakeholders as we consider all possible options for promoting Canada's interests in this long-standing dispute."
Peterson advised U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman of the development.
Last week, the extraordinary challenge panel dismissed Washington's claims that Canadian softwood exports are subsidized and damage the U.S. lumber industry. Canada immediately called on Washington to return about $5 billion collected from Canadian companies. The Americans refused, saying the ruling didn't end the matter because it did not deal with a 2004 decision from the U.S. International Trade Commission which supported the American case.
Peterson has told Portman that Canadians are outraged by the refusal to follow NAFTA rules.
Finance Minister Ralph Goodale said Washington has to understand that "Canada takes this very, very seriously."'
NDP Leader Jack Layton has said Canada must play "hardball" with the Americans by imposing export charges on oil and gas. Otherwise, he said, the United States won't take the issue seriously.
Canadian producers sell about $10 billion worth of spruce, pine and fir lumber a year to the U.S. home-construction and renovation sectors.
"Canada suspends softwood talks with U.S." posted by proud YANK.
Boy, you teed up a good one.
Why can't all foreign policy be this simple? Whiners put their tail between their legs and run off and hide.....
If America didn't want to keep its agreements, it shouldn't have made them, simple as that. Its behaviour over softwood lumber is dishonorable, to say the least. Its clearly defined in the NAFTA treaty the terms of the treaty, and these support the Canadian position. The ruling upheld the validity of Canada's complaint. Now America is just going to ignore the agreement that it convinced us to join, and the ruling?
It's shameful. I support America on most things and in most endeavours. But disobeying the terms of an agreement, and a ruling, is dishonorable. I hate to say it, but if America doesn't keep its end of the bargain, we should do what Layton suggests and put export taxes on gas, oil and uranium coming from Canada.
Willie, call your buddies and tell them to get over here and see an example of how we have given up our sovereignty to these trade organizations. Woe is us!
Unleash the Canada PING!
Call up the troops of our fair dominion.
They are "very" upset about this. What are they going to do... send in their armed forces? Ha, ha, ha, ha!! Maybe some of those un-armed citizens. Of course they have lots of draft dogers and gay's that could really whomp on us.
"...we should do what Layton suggests and put export taxes on gas, oil and uranium coming from Canada."
Canada will have to figure out something better than that. They need the US, not the reverse. Canada has been undercutting the U.S. on prescription drugs, fish, lumber, and all other resources; this isn't how to make friends and influence enemies. I will never paint all Canadians with the same brush. We have a LOT of wonderful Canadian neighbors, but the people running the government aren't among them.
Yep. Just look at all the taxpayer's money that's been wasted by the bureaucrats on this squabble.
Never should've signed NAFTA to begin with.
All it's done is give the Canadians something else to squawk about.
Much simpler to just slap a 10~15% flat-rate revenue on ALL imports, regardless whether or not they come from Canada, Mexico, China or wherever.
No muss, no fuss, no squawking.
Just revenue for the Treasury that could be used to help balance the budget and lower other forms of domestic taxation.
It will never happen.
Yeah, like Joshua Key the US Army deserter. I saw posters up around campus here in Edmonton, advertising some speech he was going to be giving. I'm sure he'll lead the charge against us!! Or maybe use their stellar submarines they bought from the UK to launch a sneak attack.
Actually, at a time when the Middle East is about as unstable as it has ever been and Hugo Chavez is talking about halting Venezuelan oil flow to the U.S., I would say that maintaining a reasonably priced flow of oil from Canada would be something the U.S. should be particularly concerned about - especially since Canada (not Saudi Arabia) is the U.S.'s largest source of imported oil.
Much as I support Bush on most matters, he has perpetuated the U.S. violation of NAFTA and WTO rules with respect to the softwood lumber matter with Canada. And if you don't care about that, then you should at least care that, thanks to Bush and a handful of members of Congress with large U.S. lumber companies stuffing their back pockets, you're paying more at Home Depot and your local lumber yard for softwood products than you would be if the U.S. simply abided by NAFTA. Same result as when Bush bowed to U.S. Steel companies to put tariffs on imported steel - thereby costing U.S. businesses requiring steel (and, therefore, U.S. consumers) a lot more than what the benefit was to the U.S. steel manufacturers.
Bush is a lot of things... some good, some not so good. But he is NOT the free trader that he purports himself to be.
I think the last line of the story pretty much destroys your point.
Of course it doesn't destroy my point. I didn't say Bush is against trade. I said he's against free trade (unless it's one way free trade that solely favors the U.S.) There is no embargo on Canadian softwood, just punitive import duties. Same as with the steel issue.
I think Canada has done very well under NAFTA.
I completely agree.
You do need us, actually. We are the single largest supplier of your oil half the year. 14% when I last checked. And NAFTA means free trade. I didn't like it then, and I understand many Americans don't like it, but that doesn't mean you don't have to hold up your end.
Look, I don't like NAFTA either. But you have to keep your end of the agreements you sign. Else your word and signature are worth bull.
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