Negotiations on freer trade in crisis. The smaller the likelihood that the end of this year will reach a deal, now the World Trade Organization WTO negotiators failed to achieve progress in a meeting last weekend in Geneva. The talks last Saturday was canceled. According to a Dutch officials, the talks more setbacks than progress.
Difficult to reach agreement
The talks which last weekend took place in Geneva in fact aims to revive free trade world. But the United States, European Union and the countries of the G-20 like Brazil and India have not shown its readiness, while the more urgent. Now the tough task awaits the WTO director Pascal Lamy the coming weeks to reach an agreement.
Pitou van Dijck According to an economist at the Center for Latin American Studies and Documentation (CEDLA), chance agreement is not so great because there is no overall progress in the negotiations. If this meeting does not have a negotiated, it is very difficult to achieve important results from now until the coming weeks, said van Dijck.
Must be ready to compromise
The three sides must be able to come to terms. This means that the three parties should be ready to compromise. The United States must reduce farm subsidies so as not to disturb the prices of agricultural products in world markets. EU pressed to open its markets to agricultural products from countries such as Brazil and India. In turn, developing countries should also reduce import duties on industrial goods abroad.
WTO round of talks began in November 2001 in Doha, capital of Qatar. Trade round aimed to eliminate various trade barriers. But this is also a development round. That is, must also take place fixes the position of developing countries. According to Pitou van Dijck is bad if negotiations stalled until the coming weeks.
According to van Dijk concrete, if current negotiations fail, and has also been recognized by various parties that they will not hold talks about the politics of multilateral trade and investment is also about politics and about many other things, but it will be done in groups, then we return to world less obscure anymore. World a less form a unity and in them moving various groups who have their own trade rules. Similarly, Pitou van Dijk.
Much is at stake
According to these economists, especially the developing countries is a big defeated if no agreement can be reached among WTO member countries. Large blocks such as the United States and the European Union more easily achieved than the interests of poor countries. This means a hard slap to the WTO. The existence of the WTO is at stake. In 1947 established the GATT, the predecessor of the WTO. The purpose of GATT, which became known as the WTO is to overcome trade barriers. Pitou van Dijck By this time more is at stake.
Actually this is the first big round, firm van Dijck. And in this round clearly affirmed we will act differently from the GATT. We will introduce a round that was primarily concerned with the interests of developing countries. In the GATT this is not so considered. So this is now more visible. There are also some very important agenda item for developing countries, especially the agricultural sector.
If this fails then the rich countries are not ready to blame because berkonsesi when discussing not only their own agenda but also the agenda of developing countries. This makes the relationship between rich countries and many developing countries became strained. Failure of the talks is also not good for poverty reduction. Thus expressed by a top UN official.
