Duty-free treatment will be revoked for all Thailand’s seafood exports to the US over labour issues. (Photo: Reuters) Bangkok (VNA) –The US has suspended duty-free treatment of certain Thaiproducts amid the two countries’ tension on Thailand’s ban of three toxicagricultural chemicals.
In a letter written to US House of RepresentativesSpeaker Nancy Pelosi and President of the Senate and Vice President Mike Pence, US President Donald Trump said he hadsuspended duty-free treatment of certain Thai products because the country hadnot taken steps to “afford workers in Thailand internationally recognisedworker rights.”
The US Trade Representative’s office said the moveamounted to a suspension of 1.3 billion USD in trade preferences for Thailandunder the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) programme.
The suspension, which goes into effect in six months,will affect about a third of Thailand’s products included in the tradeprogramme. Duty-free treatment will be revoked for all Thailand’s seafoodexports to the US over labour issues, the USTR’s office said.
A few daysearlier, the US Department of Agriculture sent a document to the Thaigovernment calling Thailand to delay and review the imposition of a ban ofusing three toxic farm chemicals, the herbicides paraquat andglyphosate and the pesticide chlorpyrifos inthe country.
The US also accused the Thai government of banningglyphosate without sufficient scientific proof, asserting that the ban will affect Thai imports of USsoybean and wheat as well as Thailand’s farmers and trade partners.
However, theThai government has rejected the US opposition. Prime Minister PrayutChan-o-cha said Thai officials would be assigned to clearly explainedThailand’s position to the US Embassy in Bangkok.
Thai DeputyMinister and Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the US was worried only about trade while the Thaigovernment was concerned about the health of Thai consumers./.
VNA
