Protectionist Talk Growing in Congress

Senate and House leaders warned President Reagan on Tuesday of a new wave of protectionist sentiment in Congress. Reagan, they said, described to them his disappointment at France’s rejection of a new round of world trade talks.

After a White House meeting on the recent seven-nation economic summit, Senate Majority Leader Robert Dole (R-Kan.) said the congressional leaders passed on to Reagan a “fairly clear message” for French President Francois Mitterrand.

The French, Dole said, would be wise to agree to new trade talks next year “before Congress starts passing protectionist measures that might deal with France, Japan and other countries.”

At the Bonn summit May 4, Mitterrand blocked Reagan’s hard-fought proposal to start the talks in 1986 and forced the summit participants to adopt a communique stating only that the talks should begin “as soon as possible.”

France’s minister of industry and foreign trade, meanwhile, denied that Paris was the spoiler at the summit.

Contrary to Reagan’s plan, Western European nations had agreed to seek certain conditions--including curbs on Japan’s booming exports--before setting a date for new trade negotiations, Minister Edith Cresson asserted during a visit to Washington. But at the last moment, she said, West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl changed his mind because he believed himself obligated to Reagan in light of his controversial visit to the Bitburg military cemetery.

Also on Tuesday, a House Agriculture subcommittee unanimously approved a bill that would permit the federal subsidy of U.S. grain exports, while Senate Agriculture Committee members considered similar legislation to stem a five-year decline in U.S. grain exports.

An increase in subsidized exports by Common Market nations has cut U.S. farm exports, said Tim Galvin, a staff member for the House panel.

But Cresson again placed the blame on other nations, saying that Canada, Australia and Argentina--not Western Europe--have picked up the slack as the U.S. share of the world grain market has fallen.

She conceded, however, that American exports have slumped to 32% from 48% in the last six years because of the U.S. embargo on grain exports to the Soviet Union and the strong dollar.

The 10-nation European Economic Community has repeatedly attempted to resolve the dispute over grain prices but remains deadlocked.

Cresson said that France is determined to maintain the Common Market system.