Zoellick and Bonner To Speak at AAPA Conference
U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert B. Zoellick and U.S.Customs Commissioner Robert C. Spring Conference meeting on Tuesday, March 19, at the Washington Court Hotel in Washington, D.C. Ambassador Zoellick will receive AAPA's Port Person of the Year Award and will provide the keynote address at 8:30 a.m. on March 19. Commissioner Bonner will be the featured speaker during the Annual "Washington People's Luncheon" from 12:30 to 2:00 p.m. He is expected to address seaport security issues during his remarks. AAPA's Port Person of the Year Award is presented annually to an individual who has made significant contributions to the port industry. opening markets abroad and maintaining an open-market policy within the U.S. maritime transportation.
INTERTANKO Discusses Developments
INTERTANKO’s work in the IMO and its regional representational programs in Asia, the EU and in the US were reviewed in a session chaired by INTERTANKO’s Deputy Managing Director, Svein Ringbakken. Talking on INTERTANKO’s work in the IMO, INTERTANKO’s Technical Director, Dragos Rauta, pointed to member involvement as one of the key factors necessary to be effective in the IMO. He said that inter-industry communication and also communications with governments on a regular basis between IMO meetings were essential. INTERTANKO spends in excess of 3000 man hours on IMO-related work, excluding member involvement attending and preparing for 18 different IMO meetings on a yearly basis. Watching developments and being ahead of them was his key message.
US Supreme Court Hears Intertanko Oral Argument
On Dec. 7 the US Supreme Court heard the oral arguments of Intertanko, the US federal government, and the State of Washington in the State of Washington tanker regulations case. The hearing lasted just over one hour, with the Intertanko counsel using 15 minutes, the Justice Department 15 minutes and the lawyer for Washington State 30 minutes. This was followed by questions from the justices and a final summing up, with two minutes allowed to each of the three parties. Intertanko's US legal counsel, Jonathan Benner, reports that the nine Supreme Court justices were well prepared and understood the arguments. The questions put to the Intertanko and the US federal government attorneys were 'reasonable and sought clarification of certain points'.
