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In another example, diplomatic tensions worsened in the early summer of 1999, when NATO planes bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. The president of a US venture capital firm said negotiations to expand his multimillion-dollar stake in China's booming telecommunications market have been on hold since the NATO bombing. 'Greater foreign access to China's telecommunications market was a key part of the WTO package agreed to last spring during Premier Zhu Rongji's visit to the US, a deal that was never consummated. [US Commerce Undersecretary David] Aaron said he will press Chinese trade officials next week to move forward with their bilateral pledges to open key markets - such as insurance and telecommunications - regardless of the outcome of the WTO talks."28 International Organizations True and beneficial multilateral relationships are not easy to enter or maintain. Involvement in an international organization has always been voluntary and, therefore, the member can decide when it will participate. This makes IOs somewhat paradoxical in nature. They do not exist to 'govern" the world, but there is a desire by those involved 28 Evelyn Iritani. 'Invitation Seen as Hopeful Sign in US-China Relations," Los Angeles Times 23 July 1999, p. 3. 69 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. to provide some type of order, if not overall then at least in certain issue areas or situations. This order comes in the form of agreements and treaties designed to identify the parameters of conduct in a specific issue area. US involvement in international organizations has not always been smooth. 'Its allies and opponents have long complained that the United States is an unreliable partner in multilateral organizations. . . . [R]ecent events have revived it. The United States tended to shun the United Nations after the latter undertook initiatives (on Israel and the New International Economic Order) unpalatable to the American public. . . . Some events . . . have fueled doubts about the depth of the American commitment to the multilateral system. The Clinton administration continued down the bilateral track with high-profile complaints against Japanese auto companies, walked away from one multilateral deal in financial services, and in early 1997 declared that it would boycott WTO dispute settlement proceedings triggered by the US Burton-Helms Act penalizing other countries' dealings with Cuba."29 Yet, activity in international organizations, especially in information and communications, is mushrooming. There are conferences and working groups on the 70 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Internet. A recent agreement in telecommunications trade was signed at the WTO. The United States is more than just present in these activities, it has been proactive in justifying its position and supporting desirable action. US relations with other countries and international institutions have become increasingly important and relevant as the world has become more interdependent. There are numerous intergovernmental30 organizations in the world that address information issues with which the United States has relationships. Some include the World Intellectual Property Rights Organization (WIPO); organizations concerning satellites (COMSAT in INTELSAT, and INMARSAT); information and telecommunications committees in the OECD; various UN conferences aimed specifically at information and communications issues. In addition, there are groups in regional organizations such as Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and CITEL, the telecommunications sub group of the Organization of American States (OAS). Three international organizations have emerged - both historically and contemporarily - as important fora for discussions surrounding information issues: the 30 Some of these are non-governmental in nature, that is, their memberships are not based on the existence of a territorial state Addressing the existence of, and relationships to, non governmental organizations (NGOs) would be the subject of another study. 71 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
International Telecommunication Union (ITU); the World Trade Organization (WTO, the successor to the General Agreements on Tariffs and Trade [GATT]); and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). US relations with these international organizations encompass most of the information issues which are relevant to foreign policy making and address the following categories: 1) access issues: the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), which focuses on international harmonization of standards; the GATT/WTO, which focuses on issues of trade in telecommunications equipment and services; and 2) content issues: UNESCO, which focuses on international flows of information and the relevant impact of media and journalists. The chapters that follow will trace the relationship of the United States to these organizations, including an analysis of the US general positioning toward them, and then analyze specific US action and policy relating to events regarding information issues which have surfaced over the years. Recent activities will be used as illustrations of the evolution US foreign information policy in the international realm, focusing specifically on multilateral settings. The cases should help two specific issues to become clear. First,the rationale that US decision makers used in 72 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
