[Senate Executive Report 110-1]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
110th Congress Exec. Rept.
SENATE
1st Session 110-1
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PROTOCOL TO THE TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP, COMMERCE, AND NAVIGATION WITH
DENMARK
_______
October 15, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Biden, from the Committee on Foreign Relations, submitted the
following
REPORT
[To accompany Treaty Doc. 108-8]
The Committee on Foreign Relations to which was referred
the Protocol to the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce, and
Navigation Between the United States and Denmark of October 1,
1951, signed at Copenhagen on May 2, 2001 (Treaty Doc. 108-8),
having considered the same, reports favorably thereon and
recommends that the Senate give its advice and consent to
ratification thereof.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Purpose..........................................................1
II. Background and Summary...........................................1
III. Entry Into Force.................................................2
IV. Implementing Legislation.........................................2
V. Committee Action.................................................2
VI. Resolution of Advice and Consent to Ratification.................3
I. Purpose
The Protocol to the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce, and
Navigation with Denmark would provide a legal basis for issuing
treaty-investor (E-2) visas to Danish investors who wish to
enter the United States ``for the purpose of developing and
directing the operations of an enterprise in which they have
invested, or in which they are actively in the process of
investing, a substantial amount of capital'' on a reciprocal
basis. U.S. investors are already eligible for Danish visas
that offer comparable benefits to those that would be accorded
nationals of Denmark pursuant to an E-2 visa. With this
Protocol, Danish investors would be eligible for E-2 visas.
II. Background and Summary
The Protocol to the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce, and
Navigation (FCN) with Denmark consists of three articles.
Article I, the only substantive article, provides that
nationals of either country shall be permitted, ``subject to
the laws relating to the entry and sojourn of aliens, to enter
the territories of the other Party and to remain therein for
the purpose of developing and directing the operations of an
enterprise in which they have invested, or in which they are
actively in the process of investing, a substantial amount of
capital.'' This is a standard provision that can be found in a
number of FCN treaties to which the United States is a party
and is a precondition to the issuance of an E-2 visa pursuant
to section 101(a)(15)(E)(ii) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act, 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(E)(ii), which permits the issuance
of an E-2 visa only to a non-immigrant who is ``. . . entitled
to enter the United States under and in pursuance of the
provisions of a treaty of commerce and navigation between the
United States and the foreign state of which he is a national .
. . solely to develop and direct the operations of an
enterprise in which he has invested, or of an enterprise in
which he is actively in the process of investing, a substantial
amount of capital.''
The Protocol will facilitate Danish investment in the
United States and will further cement a strong and growing
economic and political relationship between the two countries.
According to Department of Commerce statistics, Danish direct
investment in the United States calculated on a historical-cost
basis totaled over seven billion dollars in 2006 and U.S.
investments in Denmark accounted for eleven percent of the
total foreign direct investment in that country in 2005, making
the United States the second-largest source of foreign
investment in Denmark. Moreover, Denmark is a close ally of the
United States. Denmark has worked with the United States in a
variety of international fora, including NATO, the European
Union, and the United Nations; has forces deployed in Iraq,
Afghanistan, and Kosovo; is active in peacekeeping and
stabilization operations; and is one of the largest per capita
donors of foreign aid.
III. Entry Into Force
In accordance with Article III, the Protocol will enter
into force upon an exchange of instruments of ratification, and
shall remain in force so long as the underlying Treaty of
Friendship, Commerce, and Navigation Between the United States
and Denmark of October 1, 1951 remains in force.
IV. Implementing Legislation
No further implementing legislation is required for the
Protocol. Current law, specifically section 101(a)(15)(E)(ii)
of the Immigration and Nationality Act, suffices to implement
the Protocol.
V. Committee Action
The committee held a public hearing on the Protocol on July
17, 2007 (a hearing print of this session will be forthcoming).
Testimony was received from Mr. Wesley S. Scholz, Director of
the Office of Investment Affairs, Department of State. On
September 11, 2007, the committee considered the Protocol, and
ordered it favorably reported by voice vote, with a quorum
present and without objection.
VI. Resolution of Advice and Consent to Ratification
Resolved (two-thirds of the Senators present concurring
therein),
The Senate advises and consents to the ratification of the
Protocol between the United States of America and the Kingdom
of Denmark to the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce, and
Navigation of October 1, 1951, signed at Copenhagen on May 2,
2001 (Treaty Doc. 108-8).