The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is aiming to propose mechanisms to strengthen U.S. economic ties with Sub-Saharan Africa, including the “seamless” renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), as the White House prepares to host the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in August, said U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman on June 16. Froman spoke before the Council on Foreign Relations. U.S. industry is pressing for quick introduction of proposals to improve AGOA, and subsequently pass a renewal bill, before the program’s 2015 expiration generates costly uncertainty (see 14040402).

Assistant U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) for Europe and the Middle East Daniel Mullaney will lead on June 16 an interagency delegation to Tunis, Tunisia to meet on issues related to the U.S.-Tunisia Council on Trade and Investment, the Office of the USTR said in its weekly schedule. USTR chief Michael Froman will meet in Washington, D.C. with Chilean Minister of Foreign Affairs Heraldo Munoz on June 17. Froman will then meet on June 18 in Washington D.C. with Karel De Gucht, the European Commissioner on Trade, and will participate the following day in a public meeting of the President’s Export Council. Froman will also meet on June 19 with Cambodian Minister of Commerce Sun Chanthol.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) outlined its confidentiality procedures for Transatlantic Trade and Investment negotiations in a July 5, 2013 letter from Assistant USTR Assistant U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) for Europe and the Middle East Daniel Mullaney to Ignacio Garcia Bercero, the chief EU negotiator for TTIP. The non-profit group Knowledge Ecology International released the letter on June 12, after obtaining it through a May Freedom of Information Act request to USTR, said the group (here). The letter emphasizes the need to maintain vigilance in handling the documents, and describes certain security measures. For instance, related documents are not required to be kept in safes and may be discussed over insecure lines of communication, it said. The U.S. will also keep the documents confidential for five years following the entry into force of the agreement or the unsuccessful conclusion of negotiations, said the letter. The Office of the USTR did not immediately confirm the authenticity of the document.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is aiming to “break ground” in securing wildlife trafficking rules in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), USTR said on June 16 in a press release. The other 11 TPP partners are already combating wildlife trafficking by clamping down on illegal ivory shipments and increasing sanctions against transgressors, among other measures, said USTR. TPP is intended to foster a “framework” for shoring up those efforts, said USTR. The U.S. and more than 40 other nations pledged to engage in a global fight against wildlife trafficking in February (see 14021922).

U.S. trade officials met with Central Asian counterparts on June 10 to discuss customs coordination, sanitary measures and other bilateral trade and investment issues, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said in a statement. The meetings, held under the U.S.-Central Asia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement, targeted the facilitation of increased trade flows through 2015, said USTR. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Afghanistan are partners in the agreement. The Office of USTR did not elaborate further on details of the meetings.

U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Michael Froman canceled plans to deliver remarks to America’s Small Business Summit on June 11, a USTR spokesman confirmed. The Chamber of Commerce will host the event (see 14060801).

Acting Deputy U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Wendy Cutler will meet with senior Japanese negotiator Takeo Mori from June 9-10 to discuss automobile trade barriers in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Office of the USTR said in its weekly schedule. Cutler on June 10 will then deliver a keynote speech to a conference jointly hosted by Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Japan External Trade Organization. The speech will focus on economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region, said USTR in the release.

The Obama administration hopes to include expedited procedures for express shipments, advance customs rulings, quick release mechanisms and transparent customs regulations in a final Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said in a memo on TPP objectives made public on June 2. The U.S. also aims to strengthen customs cooperation with TPP partners to prevent illegal transshipment and duty evasion, said USTR, adding that strong rules of origin will be critical for the growth of TPP countries, including the U.S.

Assistant U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) John Melle will head a delegation to Santiago, Chile and Lima, Peru from June 2-5 to conduct meetings of committees established under the United States-Chile Free Trade Agreement and the United States-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement, according to the USTR's weekly schedule. USTR Michael Froman will then meet with the new Chilean Ambassador to the U.S., Juan Gabriel Valdes, on June 6. Assistant USTR for Environment and Natural Resources Jennifer Prescott and Assistant USTR for Trade Policy & Economics Doug Bell will also chair on June 5 a public hearing on the Environmental Goods Agreement (EGA).

U.S. and Panamanian trade officials are beginning an update of the U.S.-Panama FTA rules of origin to reflect changes to the Harmonized System (HS) of tariff nomenclature, said a joint statement by both sides following the first meeting of the U.S. - Panama Free Trade Commission on May 28. Panamanian officials hosted the summit in Panama City. “We recognized the importance of this project in easing customs administration for our customs authorities, producers, and exporters and instructed our technical teams to conclude this update for our signature,” said the statement. The officials also during the summit adopted changes to the dispute settlement mechanism in the agreement, the statement said.