611.1531/54b
The Secretary of State to
the Minister in Honduras (Lay)
No. 664
[Washington,] February 5, 1935.
Sir: With reference to the Department’s
instruction No. 653 of January 14, 1935, I am transmitting herewith a
list of concessions and assurances2 which this Government desires to obtain from
Honduras in connection with the proposed Trade Agreement. Please present
this list to the Honduran Foreign Minister, together with an aide-mémoire, the text of which is also enclosed
herewith.
Under cover of a separate instruction,3 I am supplying you with a copy
of the mimeographed report4 on Schedule I (the import schedule)
prepared by the Country Committee on Trade Agreements with Central
America, with the changes made in those recommendations by the Trade
Agreements Committee noted in the text thereof. It is believed that this
report, containing detailed analyses of the various concessions and
assurances which the United States is seeking, will provide you with
such background information on that subject as you may need during the
course of the negotiations.
In addition, I am transmitting, under cover of the same instruction, a
copy of the mimeographed report4 on textiles prepared by the Textile
sub-Committee, which formed the basis for the concessions and assurances
on textiles which the United States is now seeking.
As soon as the General Provisions for the agreement with Honduras are
approved, they will be sent to you for presentation to the Honduran
Government. Every effort will be made to supply you with an informal
Spanish translation of those Provisions at that time, in view of your
belief that consideration by the Honduran Government will be expedited
if this is done. No Spanish translation of the enclosures to this
instruction are being furnished, in order not to delay their
transmittal, but I believe that after a study of the background
information you will be in a position to make any clarifications that
the Honduran Government may require in considering them.
Very truly yours,
For the Secretary of State:
Francis
B. Sayre
[Enclosure]
Memorandum To Be Presented to the Honduran
Foreign Ministry
Attached to this memorandum is a Schedule listing under three
categories concessions and assurances on certain commodities
exported by the United States to Honduras which the United States is
requesting [Page 731] of the
Government of Honduras in connection with the proposed Trade
Agreement between the two countries.
Included under category (a) are the reductions
in import duty sought by the United States on certain specified
commodities; under (b) is included a list of
items on which it is requested that the Honduran Government not
raise the import duty during the life of the proposed Agreement;
while under (c) two notes are included
concerning treatment requested by the United States in connection
with pharmaceutical specialties and patent medicines exported to
Honduras.
In describing the articles on the attached Schedule, every effort has
been exerted to conform as closely as possible with the nomenclature
used in the Honduran customs tariff, but in view of the individual,
alphabetical arrangement employed therein, in lieu of a category
classification, the Government of the United States wishes to point
out that the concessions and assurances contained on the attached
Schedule are not limited to the tariff numbers listed following the
description of the articles, but apply to all component items of the
commodity groups indicated. The tariff item numbers listed,
therefore, are given solely for identification purposes, for the
convenience of the Honduran Government.
In no case has a preferential tariff rate been requested for products
of the United States as compared with similar products from any
third country.
The attached Schedule is being submitted at this time in order to
give the Government of Honduras ample time to study these
proposals.
It is understood that the Government of the United States reserves
the privilege of suggesting such changes in this Schedule as may on
further consideration seem desirable prior to its final approval by
both Governments.
The Government of the United States expects in the near future to
submit a preliminary draft of the General Provisions, which,
together with the Schedules setting forth the concessions and
assurances that may be reciprocally granted by the United States and
Honduras, will constitute the Trade Agreement which it is hoped will
be approved within the near future by the two Governments.
The Government of the United States is prepared to receive and give
serious consideration to any proposals that the Honduran Government
may choose to present in connection with possible tariff concessions
which the United States might grant on products exported by Honduras
to the United States of America, as well as to any other proposals
which the Government of Honduras might wish to have considered in
connection with the proposed Trade Agreement.
