20 September 1999
20 September 1999
Transcript: Aaron, Morningstar, Siddiqui Briefing in Brussels Sept. 17
(U.S. officials "encouraged" by meetings at European Commission)
Representing the United States were Under Secretary of Commerce David Aaron, Ambassador to the European Union Richard Morningstar, and Special Assistant for Trade Issues at the Department of Agriculture Isi Siddiqui. The three men held a joint press briefing afterwards at the U.S. Mission to the European Union (EU) to report on the meetings and to answer questions about the issues.
Following is a transcript of the briefing:
(begin transcript)
U.S. MISSION TO THE EUROPEAN UNION PRESS BRIEFING
AMBASSADOR DAVID AARON, UNDER SECRETARY OF COMMERCE
DR. ISI SIDDIQUI, SPECIAL ASSISTANT FOR TRADE ISSUES, US DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
AMBASSADOR RICHARD MORNINGSTAR, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE EUROPEAN UNION
SEPTEMBER 17, 1999
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
UNDER SECRETARY AARON: I'll just say a very few words on each on the issues. I understand that you have been briefed on who I've met with so far today, and I might just go down and just give you a sense of the character of the discussion.
[Excerpt]
Q: The U.S. Government has announced something on encryption, export controls on encryption equipment. Can you say what's happened there and what the impact on U.S. exporting firms might be?
UNDER SECRETARY AARON: Yes. Under the new policy that was announced yesterday, essentially, after a one-time review, encryption products of any key length will be exportable throughout the world, except to the "terrorist seven", as they call them, but they will be able to go to any civilian entity, business, non-governmental institution, so forth, without restrictions. We think this is a useful step, an important step, that will strengthen the opportunities for electronic commerce, that will provide greater security and privacy, and that it's a necessary step in view of the evolution of both the technology and the marketplace. At the same time, we will be seeking authority from the Congress to take certain steps in regard to computer security within the United States. But as far as the export control dimension of this is concerned, I think this is going to be a dramatic simplification, and streamlining of the procedures and should go a long way toward meeting some of the concerns that both customers and the industry itself have been expressing over time. Indeed, I spoke to a European representative of an American firm today, at lunch, who told me that they were quite pleased, and they felt that this would put them in a much stronger position to compete effectively in this market.