A step forward on agriculture?
Richard Waddington has a Reuters story suggesting that the Doha round of trade talks has overcome the agriculture obstacle: Five core members of the World Trade Organisation have ended hours of hard bargaining with an accord that could open the way to a deal on a trade pact by the full membership, a leading negotiator ...
Richard Waddington has a Reuters story suggesting that the Doha round of trade talks has overcome the agriculture obstacle:
Richard Waddington has a Reuters story suggesting that the Doha round of trade talks has overcome the agriculture obstacle:
Five core members of the World Trade Organisation have ended hours of hard bargaining with an accord that could open the way to a deal on a trade pact by the full membership, a leading negotiator says. “It brings the possibility of an agreement (of the full membership) nearer,” the negotiator, who had been involved in the talks, told Reuters on Thursday. The five are the United States, the European Union, Australia, India and Brazil, who are considered to represent a wide range of trade interests within the 147-state body. The WTO has set itself until midnight on Friday to seal outline deals in four key areas – farm and industrial goods, services and a new customs’ code – in a bid to put its troubled Doha Round of free trade negotiations back on track. However, a number of other members, including Switzerland, suspicious at the leading role assumed by the five, have warned that they will not be railroaded into a deal just because the big trading powers back it. The negotiator, who declined to be named or to go into detail, said that the ideas accepted by the five covered all points of the hotly disputed text on agricultural reform, which is widely seen as crucial to an overall pact…. Although there were still problems in the other issues, diplomats said that there was a good chance that they could quickly be overcome once the all-important question of agriculture had been decided. “The feeling is that they are all doable,” said one diplomat, who asked not to be named.
It’s worth noting that 15 years ago, when the Uruguay round was being negtiated, the “core members” of the world trade body were called the “Quad” — the U.S., European Union, Japan, and Canada. The fact that India and Brazil need to be consulted at this level is a testament to how the balance of power has shifted within the WTO.
Daniel W. Drezner is a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast. Twitter: @dandrezner
More from Foreign Policy
Can Russia Get Used to Being China’s Little Brother?
The power dynamic between Beijing and Moscow has switched dramatically.
Xi and Putin Have the Most Consequential Undeclared Alliance in the World
It’s become more important than Washington’s official alliances today.
It’s a New Great Game. Again.
Across Central Asia, Russia’s brand is tainted by Ukraine, China’s got challenges, and Washington senses another opening.
Iraqi Kurdistan’s House of Cards Is Collapsing
The region once seemed a bright spot in the disorder unleashed by U.S. regime change. Today, things look bleak.
Sign up for Morning Brief
Foreign Policy’s flagship daily newsletter with what’s coming up around the world today. Delivered weekdays.
By submitting your email, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use and to receive email correspondence from us. You may opt out at any time.
