LYNG WARNS U.S. TRADE SITUATION IS EXPLOSIVE (RPT)
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Richard Lyng
said Japanese government officials do not seem to understand
that protectionist sentiment in the U.S. Could lead to an
explosive situation and protectionist legislation.
    Speaking to the National Press Club of Japan, Lyng said
protectionist sentiment in the U.S. Has increased alarmingly
during the last six months.
    "It is a radically changed situation and is very explosive.
We are on the verge of some very harsh mandatory retaliatory
laws which would have very serious consequences for other
countries, especially Japan," Lyng told reporters.
    Lyng's comments about protectionist trade legislation
appeared to be a reference to the so-called Gephardt provision,
requiring retaliation against countries which have trade
surpluses with the U.S., Trade analysts said.
    U.S. House majority leader Thomas Foley, a Washington
Democrat, yesterday predicted during a visit here that the
Gephardt provision will be approved by the House when trade
legislation is taken up later this month.
    Senior Japanese officials do not seem to perceive the
volatility of the situation in the U.S., Where Congress is
increasingly unpredictable, he said.
    "The purpose of this trip is to emphasise the fact that
patience is beginning to be very much frayed in Washington. I
cannot emphasise that enough," Lyng said.
    In talks with Japanese Agriculture Minister Mutsuki Kato
yesterday, Lyng and Trade representative Clayton Yeutter asked
Japan to begin negotiations on its rice policy and end import
quotas on beef and citrus.
    Lyng said he was disappointed Kato rejected the U.S.
Request but hoped it would not lead to a protectionist response
in Congress, where legislation on rice retaliation has been
introduced in both the House and Senate.
    Lyng said the U.S. Is dependent on Japan as a market for
exports because Japan has been the largest buyer of U.S. Farm
products since 1964, especially grains.
    He said the U.S. Understands Japan, with a limited land
area, is concerned about maintaining some level of
self-sufficiency in food for national security reasons.
    But he argued the freeing of farm product imports would not
necessarily weaken Japanese agriculture.
    Lyng pledged the U.S. Will never again embargo shipments of
farm products as it did in 1973.
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