*EPF508 11/09/2001
U.S. Negotiators Cautiously Optimistic on New Trade Talks
(WTO members seeking the right balance in Doha) (1020)

By Berta Gomez
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- U.S. negotiators say the launch of new global trade talks is within the "collective grasp" of the 142 countries gathered in the Qatari capital of Doha for a November 9-13 ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

"We have some difficult negotiations before us but if you look at the attitude of the countries coming here -- we think that countries are interested in finding the right formula for launching these negotiations," a senior U.S. trade official told reporters in Doha on the eve of the conference.

Prospects for agreement are improved by WTO members' belief that expanded trade will invigorate the global economy, as well as their desire not to repeat the failure of the 1999 WTO meeting in Seattle, which unraveled amid street protests and negotiators' inability to reach consensus on key issues. The U.S. official also stressed that chances for launching a new round are far greater now that the United States and the European Union are fundamentally united on the need for global trade talks.

The official said WTO members had learned from the Seattle experience, and that documents being considered at Doha are streamlined and reflect a lengthy and comprehensive consultation process involving ministers from all regions. "I think that's one factor actually that is working on our side here -- that people don't want to be part of a second failure," the official said.

Ministers in Doha will discuss three basic documents: a draft outlining the elements of the proposed talks and providing guidance to the negotiators; a document dealing with the issue of intellectual property protection in the context of health crises; and a third document listing developing country concerns with previous trade agreements.

The outline for the negotiations is a "cohesive document" that seeks to encompass competing views and reflect the interests of WTO economies of all sizes, the U.S. official said, adding: "What we're talking about here in Doha is 142 countries coming together to find the right balance."

Regarding U.S.-EU trade relations, the official suggested that previous disputes had been permitted to get in the way of cooperation at the global level.

"Before Seattle the relationship between the United States and the European Union was not good. And frankly, our conflict dominated our consensus-building and our cooperation at that time," the official said.

"Here there is a very different situation," he stressed. Despite ongoing disagreements on any number of bilateral trade issues, "both the U.S. and the EU share a common view that launching of multilateral set of trade negotiations is essential not just for our interests -- our respective economic interests -- but for the interest of the overall system and the world economy."

Along the same lines, the official said that concerns about the global economic slowdown had added a sense of urgency to the WTO's task of expanding trade. He cited statistics illustrating the benefits of open markets, and pointed to a recent World Bank study showing that developing countries with open economies had experienced more than 5 percent per capita annual growth during the 1990s, while closed economies had grown just over 1 percent in the same period.

Turning to U.S. goals for Doha, the official said that liberalizing agricultural trade remains "first and foremost" on the agenda. He noted that globally the average tariff on agricultural products is about 60 percent, even though tariffs on industrial products has fallen to below 5 percent. There is a "huge disparity" that must be addressed, the official said.

The United States believes that export subsidies for agricultural products should be eliminated, the official said, adding that other forms of trade-distorting support for agriculture are "on the agenda for negotiations."

U.S. negotiators also believe that the negotiations following Doha should include the further lowering of industrial tariffs, as well as increased transparency in government procurement.

The official acknowledged that many countries use government procurement as a development tool, and underlined that the United States is not insisting that governments get rid of preferences for domestic suppliers. "All we are saying is: 'Put it out in the open,'" he said. "If nothing else, governments will end up saving money because there will be more competition, both domestically and foreign."

The United States also hopes the package includes negotiations on liberalizing services trade and making customs procedures more reliable and efficient. Other U.S. priorities include liberalization of trade in environmental goods and services and expansion of developing country trade negotiating capacity.

The official said that this last goal was absolutely necessary, given that about two-thirds of WTO members are developing economies. "I think it will be very clear ... there is a much greater emphasis on integrating trade capacity building and technical assistance with the negotiations this time than in any other round of negotiation," he said.

For its part, the United States has focused its efforts on trade capacity-building, providing more than $500 million to such projects in the developing world last year alone, the official said.

Turning to investment, the official said that the United States is not insisting that investment be part of the negotiations, but would work with those who seek its inclusion. He expressed less enthusiasm about including competition policy in new negotiations. "This is one area where there is growing interest, but again it's an area that is new and many countries at this point do not feel comfortable saying right now, let's have negotiations," he said.

He also expressed U.S. opposition to renegotiating the Uruguay Round agreement on intellectual property protection, adding that the existing accord provides adequate flexibility to address concerns about access to medicines for dealing with AIDS, malaria, or other major health issues.

He defended U.S. policies on dumping as "scrupulously" following WTO anti-dumping procedures. "Frankly, our concern on anti-dumping is that more and more countries are using anti-dumping and they don't all have the same degree of transparency in their procedures and due process that we have in ours," the official said.

(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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