ArmInfo. The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) and the Greek-American Council of Leaders (HALC) welcomed the position of President Trump, who today called for an end to the preferential trade regime for Turkey. This position is a political priority long put forward by HALC and ANCA.In a joint statement, the two organizations say that they are "pleased that the administration has accepted a long-standing call to protect American taxpayers and consumers from the need to forcibly subsidize Turkish exports to US markets," said HALC executive director Andy Zemenides and ANCA executive director Aram Ampharyan.
"Although, for reasons that remain unclear, the president's determination is expressed in manifestly contradictory praise for Turkey's progress, the overall effect of these actions is obvious to everyone: a serious failure for Ankara, urgently needed support for American manufacturers, and a big step towards more reasonable and serious approach to Erdogan's growing anti-American regime>.
In letters sent to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, Trump argued that Turkey's withdrawal from the Generalized System of Preferences program is due to the fact that Turkey is economically developed and should not take advantage of access to the United States market. "The increase in gross national income per capita, the reduction of poverty and the diversification of exports by trading partners and by sectors - all this indicates an increase in the level of economic development in Turkey," the letters said.However, the US trade representative announced in August 2018 that he was considering Turkey's right to participate in the program after Ankara introduced response tariffs for US goods in response to US steel and aluminum tariffs.The United States identified Turkey as the beneficiary country of the General System of Preferences in 1975. According to USTR sources, 17.7% of total US imports from Turkey in 2017, totaling $ 1.66 billion, came from this program. Among the leading categories of GSP imports were jewelry and precious metals, vehicles and auto parts, and stone products.
By law, the exclusion of Turkey from the program will occur no earlier than 60 days after notification of the Congress and the Government of Turkey, and will be adopted by a Presidential Decree.According to the GSP, some products may be brought into the United States duty free if the beneficiary countries meet the selection criteria established by Congress. These criteria include, among other things, respecting arbitral awards in favor of US citizens or corporations, fighting child labor, respecting internationally recognized workers' rights, ensuring adequate and effective protection of intellectual property, and providing the United States with fair and reasonable market access. Countries may also be excluded from the program depending on factors related to economic development.