The WTO has finally created unity among its 152 members — but unfortunately for head Pascal Lamy, the only thing all states agree on is that the prospect of a new trade deal is still as far away as ever.
Lamy said the publication of new texts on agriculture and industrial goods — key sticking points for nearly seven years of torturous negotiations — clarified remaining obstacles to an agreement in the Doha trade round.
“These revised negotiating texts illustrate clearly where convergence lies among the WTO members ... we are getting closer to our end game,” Lamy said.
The round was launched in the Qatari capital in November 2001 with the aim of reaching a deal by 2004.
But it has foundered ever since, mainly over disputes between developed and developing countries on agricultural subsidies and industrial tariffs.
The WTO chief has said a deal is “doable,” and has made it clear he would like to see Doha wrapped up before US President George W. Bush leaves office early next year.
But his was a lone voice of optimism this week as key WTO members made clear their objections to the texts, casting further doubt on the likelihood of any imminent breakthrough.
“The new draft texts on agriculture and manufacturing are disappointing,” said top US trade official Susan Schwab.
“Unfortunately recent developments in Geneva have moved the negotiations in the direction of less balance and less market access,” she said.
The EU has been a main advocate of trade liberalization but there are increasing signs of hostility among some of its 27-member states.
French trade minister Anne-Marie Idrac said that “we have a lot of questions” about the agriculture proposals and “for us French there’s no improvement on market access for our industrial goods to emerging markets.”
Ireland, where farmers constitute a significant political lobby, cast doubt on the wisdom of a deal at all costs.
“Our view is you need substance. It’s not about completing this just because there’s six months left for the US presidency,” new foreign minister Michael Martin said in Brussels this week.
Asked if he thought therefore that it would be wise to wait until after the US election he replied “that would be my view, yes.”
Developing countries were also forthright in their criticism, with Indian commerce secretary G.K. Pillai slamming proposed tariff cuts on industrial goods as a “total mess” that need to be redrafted. The latest text on industrial goods — known as non-agricultural market access (NAMA) in WTO parlance — proposes that about 30 emerging market countries would agree to reduce their customs duties to a maximum level of 19 to 26 percent. The more the tariffs are lowered, the greater would be the right of governments to protect certain “sensitive” items.
WTO sources sought to portray the various reactions to the texts as just posturing, but other observers believe that time is rapidly running out for any deal this year.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique