I hope they get every penny there asking for.
Antigua ups the ante with US$7 billion bid
Sunday August 26 2007
by Patricia Campbell
Antigua and Barbuda’s claims against the US are likely to reach as high as US$7 billion as the internet gambling dispute continues.
Antigua and Barbuda’s attorney at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Mark Mendel has warned the US to expect billions more in sanctions as the country prepares to file its claim in respect of America’s decision to withdraw from its General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) commitment to international market access in the areas of gambling and betting services.
In June, Antigua and Barbuda initiated an effort to impose trade sanctions valued at US$3.4 billion annually on the United States, filing a claim for concessions primarily through the suspension of Antigua’s copyrights, trademarks, industrial designs and patents obligations to the US.
“The US$3.4 billion is just what we’re entitled to by virtue of them not having complied with the decision,” Mendel said, explaining that Antigua has not yet filed a claim to address the GATS withdrawal issue.
“We haven’t even told them what that claim will be yet. The only thing I told them is it’ll be at least as big as our other claim,” Mendel told the Antigua Sun.
This latest declaration means that Antigua and Barbuda’s total claims against the US could reach and even surpass US$7 billion.
The European Union has filed a $15 billion claim against the US for its withdrawal from its GATS commitments.
Mendel told the SUN that he met with representatives from the office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), at their request, at the beginning of the month. He said that the meeting, however, led to no progress.
“We’ve asked them to give us some proposals as to how they could solve things with us and they have yet to really give us any firm proposals, so it was a very inconclusive meeting… I think the reason that they did (call it) was just so that they could say that they did so.” That meeting was with the branch of the USTR dealing with the GATS commitment. A separate group from the USTR is handling the dispute resolution aspect of the conflict between the two countries. Mendel says that he is still looking to that group to address how the case can be settled.
On Friday, Antigua and Barbuda’s representatives go back to the WTO to present a justification of the $3.4 billion sanction it officially sought to claim last month.
Mendel has maintained from the start that the $3.4 billion in sanctions are justifiable. As he explained it, the sanctions were calculated by an internationally recognised firm of economists and were based on calculations that took into account the size and value of the global internet gaming market as well as Antigua and Barbuda’s market share.
He told the SUN that the amount in sanctions was “completely defensible.”
“It’s a massive number but, after talking to the economists and going through everything, it is a very realistic number,” he said. He acknowledged that the figure is several times Antigua and Barbuda’s GDP, but pointed to the massive wealth created for Antigua and Barbuda and its online gambling companies by the industry, wealth which Mendel said has been almost destroyed by the actions of the US.
“I think we’re still in the driver’s seat and I feel optimistic about it. It’s tough and we’re the smallest guys in the world taking on the biggest but I think we’re doing well,” he said.
Sunday August 26 2007
by Patricia Campbell
Antigua and Barbuda’s claims against the US are likely to reach as high as US$7 billion as the internet gambling dispute continues.
Antigua and Barbuda’s attorney at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Mark Mendel has warned the US to expect billions more in sanctions as the country prepares to file its claim in respect of America’s decision to withdraw from its General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) commitment to international market access in the areas of gambling and betting services.
In June, Antigua and Barbuda initiated an effort to impose trade sanctions valued at US$3.4 billion annually on the United States, filing a claim for concessions primarily through the suspension of Antigua’s copyrights, trademarks, industrial designs and patents obligations to the US.
“The US$3.4 billion is just what we’re entitled to by virtue of them not having complied with the decision,” Mendel said, explaining that Antigua has not yet filed a claim to address the GATS withdrawal issue.
“We haven’t even told them what that claim will be yet. The only thing I told them is it’ll be at least as big as our other claim,” Mendel told the Antigua Sun.
This latest declaration means that Antigua and Barbuda’s total claims against the US could reach and even surpass US$7 billion.
The European Union has filed a $15 billion claim against the US for its withdrawal from its GATS commitments.
Mendel told the SUN that he met with representatives from the office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), at their request, at the beginning of the month. He said that the meeting, however, led to no progress.
“We’ve asked them to give us some proposals as to how they could solve things with us and they have yet to really give us any firm proposals, so it was a very inconclusive meeting… I think the reason that they did (call it) was just so that they could say that they did so.” That meeting was with the branch of the USTR dealing with the GATS commitment. A separate group from the USTR is handling the dispute resolution aspect of the conflict between the two countries. Mendel says that he is still looking to that group to address how the case can be settled.
On Friday, Antigua and Barbuda’s representatives go back to the WTO to present a justification of the $3.4 billion sanction it officially sought to claim last month.
Mendel has maintained from the start that the $3.4 billion in sanctions are justifiable. As he explained it, the sanctions were calculated by an internationally recognised firm of economists and were based on calculations that took into account the size and value of the global internet gaming market as well as Antigua and Barbuda’s market share.
He told the SUN that the amount in sanctions was “completely defensible.”
“It’s a massive number but, after talking to the economists and going through everything, it is a very realistic number,” he said. He acknowledged that the figure is several times Antigua and Barbuda’s GDP, but pointed to the massive wealth created for Antigua and Barbuda and its online gambling companies by the industry, wealth which Mendel said has been almost destroyed by the actions of the US.
“I think we’re still in the driver’s seat and I feel optimistic about it. It’s tough and we’re the smallest guys in the world taking on the biggest but I think we’re doing well,” he said.
