BY ARGIRIS MALAPANIS
On February 20, the Geneva-based World Trade
Organization appointed a panel of judges to hear a European
Union (EU) complaint that Washington's latest legislation
tightening the U.S. embargo against Cuba violates WTO trade
rules.
Hours later U.S. government officials said the panel has "no competence to proceed." They declared that the Clinton administration will not send anyone to the hearings. The February 21 New York Times quoted an unnamed White House official saying, "We will not show up."
Big-business dailies on the other side of the Atlantic tried to paint a picture less bleak for Washington's allies, who are also its competitors, in the European Union. "US leaves door ajar in row over Cuba trade," was the headline of an article in the February 21 Financial Times of London. "The US yesterday kept alive hopes of a settlement with the European Union over the Helms-Burton anti-Cuba law by not seeking to block the formation of a World Trade Organisation panel to rule on the dispute," the article stated.
U.S. government officials, however, had much harsher words to offer, indicating the White House will seek to use U.S. economic and military superiority in Europe to squash the EU challenge. The New York Times quoted another anonymous representative of the Clinton administration saying, "We do not believe anything the W.T.O. says or does can force the U.S. to change its laws."
Washington maintains that its misnamed Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act, also referred to as the Helms- Burton law, falls outside WTO jurisdiction. The U.S. government argues that Washington can order unilateral trade sanctions against foreign companies that invest in or trade with Cuba for reasons of "national security."
The Clinton administration is demanding that the European Union back off and accept an out-of-court settlement to Washington's liking within several weeks. Short of that, the White House said it will formally invoke its "national security exemption" to abort any WTO hearings on the issue.
At the heart of the dispute is Title III of the Helms- Burton law, which permits Cuban-American and other U.S. businessmen whose property on the Caribbean island was expropriated by Cuban workers and peasants after the 1959 revolution to sue companies in third countries that invest in those properties.
In early January, Clinton suspended for another six months implementation of this provision after the European Union passed a resolution condemning Havana for alleged human rights violations. But the U.S. president is using his leeway to continue waiving Title III as a bludgeon against Washington's imperialist allies in Europe and Canada.
"We cannot have the sword of Damocles hanging over our heads," said Jacques Santer, president of the European Commission, during a visit to the United States two months ago.
The dispute threatens to destroy the World Trade Organization if the EU insists on pushing for a ruling against Washington, which the U.S. government has said it will not accept. "The US would create serious problems if it rejected the WTO's right to hear the Helms-Burton case or refused to abide by a ruling," said the February 21 Financial Times article. "WTO panel decisions are supposed to be binding and can be enforced by authorising retaliatory trade sanctions."