World Leaders Drop Deadline for Completing Doha Round
Former trade representative says this is more realistic approach.
Compiled by staff
Published: Jun 30, 2010
WTO watchers are applauding a move by world leaders to drop a commitment to conclude the stuck-in-neutral Doha trade round this year.
G8 and G20 leaders meeting in Canada this past weekend omitted any talk of deadlines and merely renewed their pledge to finish the round. Former U.S. Trade Representative Clayton Yeutter called it a wise decision.
"This does indicate that the chiefs of state are becoming more realistic about the Doha Round than they have been previously," Yeutter said. "In previous summits they've always not only encouraged the conclusion of the Doha Round but have often put a timetable to lets get it done by the end of the year and none of those deadlines have ever been met."
According to Yeutter the new absence of any deadline also may signal that they have fundamentally given up on accomplishing much of anything in the Doha Round and are moving on, at least mentally, to other things."
Launched in 2001, the global trade talks have been stalled since 2008 largely due to disagreements between the United States and advanced developing countries China, India and Brazil over the proper balance between reductions in domestic farm support and increased market access.
At the urging of WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy G20 members instructed their trade officials to return to the bargaining table in Geneva to finish the remaining 20% of work Lamy said is needed to wrap up a subsidy and tariff-cutting agreement. But he conceded that negotiators are staring at each other waiting for the other side to move first. The G20 pledged to discuss the status of the trade talks at its next meeting in November in Seoul.
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