US trade rep reassures Vietnam after bill defeat

HANOI, Nov 15 (Reuters) Normalising trade relations with Vietnam is a top priority for the United States and the historic legislation would likely be passed in December, the top US trade official said today.

''PNTR (permanent normal trade relations) is just a matter of time and we're fully confident it will be enacted,'' US Trade Representative Susan Schwab told reporters in Hanoi after the trade bill failed to win enough votes in the US House of Representatives on Monday.

The vote, a setback for US President George W Bush who arrives in Hanoi for a regional summit this weekend, dismayed Vietnam and US business leaders eyeing lucrative trade opportunities between the two former war enemies.

Despite sniping in Washington between Republicans and Democrats blaming each other for the defeat, Schwab said there was strong bipartisan support for permanent normal trade relations with Vietnam.

Another vote would likely take place after US legislators returned in early December. ''The current issue has to do with procedure and timing, not substance,'' she said.

House Republican leaders had hoped on Monday to give Bush a strong send-off by approving the bill, the final step in normalising trade relations.

To speed passage, they placed the Vietnam bill on the House ''suspension calendar'' -- a shortcut that allows bills to move more quickly but requires a two-thirds vote to be approved.

That strategy failed when supporters mustered only a 228-161 vote in favour of the Vietnam bill.

''It's a disappointment for the Bush administration that President Bush is coming here without PNTR,'' said Adam Sitkoff, executive director of the American Chamber of Commerce chapter in Hanoi.

DECEMBER VOTE After that vote, Republicans said they could try to pass the bill later in the week through regular House procedures, where a simple majority would be enough to win approval.

The House now won't vote on the Vietnam bill until December because lawmakers are scheduled to leave soon. The House decision makes a Senate vote unlikely this week as well.

''The measure will not be brought up this week,'' Kevin Madden, a spokesman for House Majority Leader John Boehner, an Ohio Republican, said in an e-mail. ''We expect the bill will be revisited sometime prior to adjournment this year.'' Sen. Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat who has pushed for approval of the bill before the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Hanoi, called the House decision ''incredibly disappointing,'' especially because of Bush's visit.

''It's long past time to grant Vietnam permanent normal trade relations. I guess we could say better late than never but in this case late is not good,'' Baucus said in a statement.

Congress must approve normal trade relations with Vietnam for US farmers, manufacturers and other businesses to share in the tariff cuts and other concessions Vietnam has made to join the World Trade Organisation.

Hanoi's WTO membership is expected to become official next month or in early January.

REUTERS PB PM1618