G-20 summit named 11 countries as tax havens: Antigua, Barbados, Botswana, Brunei, Panama, Seychelles, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, which holds the presidency of the G20, stated that the 11 countries as not meeting transparency standards on tax matters and warned that these countries will be shunned by the international community. Are You a “TAX HAVEN”? When the matter was presented to the UN General Assembly, Ambassador Pablo Antonio Thalassinos of Panama, one of the countries named by Sarkozy, objected. He insisted that his country “is not a tax haven”. Ambassador Thalassinos further intervened: “The statements issued by the presidency of the G20 are premature and prejudiced due to the fact that the review process of the Global Forum is currently underway and Panama is currently working on clarifying its request for a supplementary report. Panama is not a tax heaven. Panama demands that it no longer be qualified as such by any country, be they a member of the G20, the OECD or otherwise.” Sarkozy’s Diplomatic Advisor, Jean-David Levitte, (Photo Above), responded that inclusion in this list “is not punitive” and “quite the opposite.” He offered an image of cooperation: “Three countries expressed consternation in being in this list of 11 countries. As I said, the approach of the 105 countries of the Global Forum is not punitive, quite the opposite, it is aimed at going forward, hand in hand, to achieve a thorough globalization on this issue too.” Scorpion’s Dance: As EU budgets have been squeezed and the old Europe is increasingly one, the pressure on presumed tax haven has been particularly intense from Brussels and the other major capitals including Berlin and Paris. The matter has significant diplomatic as well as economic/budgetary considerations, thus the UN as a forum. However, the economic impact is not only upon those states whose citizens are perhaps engaged in tax avoidance, as France. Many of the so-called tax-havens have developed financial and related service industries to exploit their “discreet” situation. A sharp drop in the financial industries could deliver recession, even economic depression to such countries, as banking is one or the major economic foundation for employment, related industries and government revenues. This will continue as a scorpion’s dance for the so-called tax-havens as they try to avoid the sting of much bigger neighbors and powers but also a self inflicted wound that could be even more fatal. The question for some also becomes will the next target on their businesses be issues like ports of convenience for ship registration purposes, something again particularly important for Panama? By Ambassador Muhamed Sacirbey Facebook – Become a Fan at “Diplomatically Incorrect”

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